Taming (Wizardess Heart) COMPLETE
by Fonix Girl
Summary: Elias isn't sure what to do. Klaus and Selene are gone, vanished in the wake of an accident involving Selene's brother. And if that's not enough, he's got the new girl as his buddy to worry about, one who's making him think the strangest things. Is this what Klaus felt about Selene? No, it can't be. Anyhow, this can't possibly get worse...can it? (Elemental Spin-Off)
1. Prologue

This corresponds with Chapter 47 of Elemental Wizardess (Heart), my original Wizardess story (and honestly this'll make a lot more sense if you read Elemental up to chapter 47). This story takes place at the same time as that part of Elemental (Ch 47-60ish). This story will be approximately over the span of a month in story time. It's pretty similar to Elias' original route, but it'll be entirely from his POV, not from my OC pairing for him. Enjoy!

And, this story will most likely be approximately 15 chapters plus this little prologue, as it's close to the original route. Most of what comes after will probably be fluff and fun chapters—extra's and whatnot, unless I decide to throw in another arc. But that's unlikely, at least for a long time, because Selene narrates most of what happens in the Elemental Spiral (which is what I'm calling all the stories that take place in the Elemental Wizardess (Heart) world—because it starts with Elemental and spirals outward from there ;) except for the starter/spin-off stories for the other characters. The chapters in this story, Taming, will be named after the chapters of the original route. Well, not the prologue, but the rest of them will be (until the end of the route).

For more of a more detailed explanation of the Elemental Spiral and all it entails, see my author page. :)

Enjoy! (and remember that it's all from Elias' POV)

* * *

Prologue—Selene's Disappearance

"Are you sure you should be going after her, Klaus?" I said, "I mean, I'm as worried as you are, but shouldn't you at least wait until Monday? She's probably coming back then."

He sighed, "I can't be sure about that. You didn't see her, Elias. I did. She looked empty, Elias. Empty."

"What?"

"She seemed to have nothing inside of her. She showed absolutely no emotion, and when have you ever known her to not show emotion? Something was clearly wrong. Elias, never in my life have I been this worried." My eyes widened as I looked at him—he was dead serious.

"You are, aren't you?" I replied, understanding, "Is there anything you want me to do? Prefect work or whatnot?"

He relaxed marginally, "Thank you. I'll let the headmaster know to direct any prefect work to you while I'm gone."

I nodded, "Make sure she's okay, please."

With that, he got up to go talk to the headmaster, and I left his room to go back to the dorm. I found Yukiya in our room, working on homework. He looked up when I walked in, face blank.

"She's gone." I said, "She's gone back to Terra."

"Why?" was all he said.

I sat on my bed, looking at the ceiling, "I don't know. But from what Klaus had seen yesterday when he found her, it can't be good." I propped my elbows on my knees and held my head in my hands, "And, I hate to admit it, but I'm worried. I feel like something awful has happened and my not being sure of exactly what is going on is making it worse. Did you hear her tarot reading?" He nodded, and I continued, "I feel like this corresponds to it. Something bad had happened, and it's just going to get a whole heck of a lot worse before it gets better."

"It'll all work out in the end." He said simply, turning back to his work, "It's Selene, after all." The unspoken "I hope." hung in the air as heavily as a boulder suspended above our heads.

I'm not sure how much that consoled me. I layed back on my bed. For the first time, I have absolutely no desire to be studying, no matter how much I know I'll regret it later.

I hope Selene's going to be okay.

* * *

Authoress: With the exception of right now and the last chapter, this'll be the only two with an ender. I've decided to make a fun fact instead of an ender, just to change it up. I feel like it'd be a bit too much to do endings with all the different Elemental Spiral stories. So only Elemental will have the endings.

* * *

 **Fun Fact 1** : I literally finished this story the day after 2016 United States of America Presidential Election. Literally. I finished it around 11:30 a.m. I found out at around 6L00 a.m. that morning the Presidential Trump had won. In my journalism class, which is a very talkative type of class, I'm pretty much the only conservative in the class of liberals (granted there's only about 17 of us in that class, but still). Let's just say my classmates were extremely subdued that day. I, on the other hand, was having a great day (and not because of politics, which just give me a headache, but because I finished Taming XD)


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1—The Worst Meeting

I trudged back to the dorm, ready to end the day. My bag was loaded with books from the library. I couldn't slack off just because I was worried about Selene. I don't know what I was thinking this weekend, not studying. I've got to work harder for a while to make up for it. And that's not even mentioning the work I've got to do for Klaus, prefect work and all. Though, that part wasn't too hard, to be honest. Klaus just did far more than he needed to.

"Huh?! Hey! Wait!" I heard a voice cry as I approached the dorm, "Hey! Come back here! I need to get inside!"

I was confused. It sounded like a girl, but why would she be by the boys' dorm so close to curfew? "Oh, what am I going to do…?" I heard her moan, "It'll be _really_ bad if the door runs off somewhere…! I've gotta do something! Alright, um, the spell to change it back to normal…"

I came in sight of the front of the building seeing an unfamiliar girl—wearing the uniform, shorter than even Selene, with brown hair pulled into childish pigtails—scrambling to cast some sort of spell as the door itself ran about on some new legs. I dropped my bag and walked over without thinking, serious aura about me, pulling out my wand and opening my mouth to cast a spell. I made sure to pull the girl behind me where she wouldn't do more harm—it was most likely her bungled spell that caused this mess. "I command thee to return to thine true form! Supasaman Mundi!" Magical power quickly gathered at the end of my wand and shaped itself into an arrow of light. This was a simple spell for breaking simple mistakes. The arrow shot at the door, of course hitting dead center. The door began to shine, and flew past us as an arrow itself towards the door frame, becoming a door once more.

The girl stared at me in awe, "That...that was amazing!"

I turned to face her, lowering my wand. "What are you doing here?" I said curtly.

"Oh, uh, I was just…" she stumbled over her words. It was irritating. I very strongly disliked it when people couldn't just come out and say something.

"Didn't you know this was the boys' dorm?" I gave her a sharp look.

The surprised look on her face made me want to roll my eyes, but I refrained from doing so. Selene would scold me...wait. She wasn't back yet. That thought made the worry that had been nagging me the past few days come back in full force, though I didn't show it. I have picked up a thing to two from my older brother.

"Huh?! The _boys'_ dorm?!" she looked embarrassed, then irritated, though not at me.

I sighed inwardly, "I haven't seen you around here, but judging from your clothes...a new student, I presume?"

"Oh, um, yes!" She responded quickly. Have I ever mentioned that I really don't like filler words like "uh" or "um" before?

"Quite daring of you to try and infiltrate the boys' dorm on your first day." I said, feeling contrary.

"You've got it all wrong!" She looked panicked now, "This was just a, a misunderstanding…!"

"Hmm...on top of that," I continued, ignoring her protests, "you couldn't even cast a door opening spell...were you really accepted into this school?"

She looked mildly offended, "...Yes! Yes I was!"

I wanted to snort, but again had the thought of how Selene would whack me on the back of the head for being so rude, "I'm hard pressed to believe you." Not even Selene was that pathetic when she arrived, and she was a major screw up at first! "Then, how about this? I'll present you with a question?"

"Huh?! A question…?" she looked confused. Just how thick was this girl?

"It'll be very easy, one of those things everyone knows. If you can't answer it, you should probably just go home." It'll be something, even Selene, who'd been self taught in a different, nonmagical dimension, would've known when she first got here, and this wasn't even her first language! Well, it might have been, but since English is spoken back in Terra, I assume she learned it first. But I know for sure she didn't learn history of this country all too well until she got here.

She gulped, looking nervous. A wizard(ess) with no confidence in themselves shouldn't be a magic user. "The dragon who guided the First King to Gedonelune, and became the purpose of the founding of this school, ruled over which power?" See? Simple basic question anyone who grew up in this country should know.

She relaxed, "Time!" She declared, "He was the Dragon of Time!"

"Oh well." I sighed, "Looks like you know basic history." She looked irritated. What, was she expecting praise? "In any case," I continued, "if you can't even cast a spell this simple…do you really think you can keep up in class?" I knew I was being mean, but if she can't handle it, she'll do naught but fail in life.

Her shoulder slumped, and she mumbled something that sounded like a protest.

"And you hadn't even memorized the spell correctly. Normally, you study first, then…" She looked very scolded as I started to lecture her. I am the substitute prefect at the moment, and it's the prefect's duty to make sure students don't make the same stupid mistakes twice.

She listened in silence for a few moments, then her eyes widened. So did mine. Her emblem was glowing. I glanced at my own, and it was doing the same.

"Huh?!" she sounded extremely confused.

"Wha...what's going on!" I gasped as a glowing light sphere enveloped us. In an instant, it burst and rained little light particles on the two of us...crap...

"What just…" she began.

"You can't be serious…!" I cried out.

She looked at me, "What?"

"There's just no way...this can't happen!" I looked at the girl, feeling irritated panic rise in my chest, "I'm a buddy with, with...you?!"

Her brow furrowed in confusion, "...buddy?"

Irritation beat back panic, "This must be some sort of mistake! I won't accept this!" I put my wand back up, "Aperio Porta!" The dorm door opened and I summoned my bag which sped into my hand before furiously storming into the dorm.

"Wow…" I heard the girl—who's name I didn't even know—whisper, "He shortened the spell…" As if that's anything special! I thought angrily, Klaus doesn't even need an incantation most of the time! "Wait…this is no time to be impressed!" She scolded herself before calling out to me as I was about to slam the door behind me, "What _was_ that, anyway? What's a 'buddy' thing?" Does she not even know proper grammar?! I mentally growled as I shut the door.

Just then, the bell for curfew rang. "I've got to hurry to the girls' dorm!" she was again talking to herself. I was thinking about helping her a bit earlier, but now I had no desire to do so. Most people were no longer in the common room, but there were a few people lingering about. I sighed, ' _time to do my duty as dorm master_.' I pushed the recent event to the back of my mind for the moment and went over and told everyone it was time to head back to their rooms. A few mumbled and groaned, but they all did what I asked. The only one who didn't do anything was Luca, who was messing with some strands of light that he had coming out of the end of his wand. The boy had more magical ability than he knew what to do with. I don't think it's fair that the one person who couldn't care less has such ability, while I, who works so hard, can't have more than average magical abilities.

"Luca, time to go back to your room." I deadpanned.

"You're not going back to yours." he retorted.

"I've got a job to do. You don't."

"Eh, have fun with that." He went back to his light threads. I rubbed my temples, feeling the headache I always got when having to deal with him.

"Luca, if you don't just listen for once and do what you're told, I'll…"

"You'll what?" He taunted, smirking, "Make the dorm door grow legs?"

I felt an angry blush begin to rise in my face as I remembered the whole emblem incident, "Luca!" I glared at him, "What did you do?"

He raised his hands innocently, though the glint in his eye was anything but, "I didn't do anything."

"Luca…" I growled, silently demanding an answer from him.

"Fine then," he cackled, "I helped a little lost Kittycat when she asked how to get to _the_ dorm building. Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got somewhere to be." He stood up and quickly walked off.

"LUCA!"

…. …. ….

I hadn't managed to find Luca again to thoroughly scold him, and in the end returned to my room with a pounding headache. I dropped off my bag onto my bed and went straight for my nightstand, opening the drawer and removing some chocolate. I opened the wrapper and took a bite. By the time I finished it, my headache receded a good deal. Sugar usually helped. It didn't hurt that it tasted good, too.

Yukiya was getting ready to go to bed. "There was a magic note that came for you. It's on your desk. And what happened?" He asked in his usual uninterested (that tended to be what it came across as even when he was very happy or excited) tone. Before Selene came along, Yukiya hardly spoke a few words a day—now, he'd speak at least what seemed to be several full sentences. Selene had a great effect on most everybody.

I sighed and explained the girl I'd met earlier, and when I got to the part shortly following the lighting up, I began to relentlessly rant in frustration. Yukiya listened silently. He was good at that. "And to make it worse," I continued, "It turns out that it was Luca's fault! He was the one who played the trick on her and caused this whole thing to happen! As if I don't have enough to do already! He wouldn't dare do something like that if Selene was here…!" I cut myself off sharply when I mention our silver-eyed friend. Both of us are worried about her, and bringing her up doesn't help any. I bite my lip, regretting it already.

"But she's not here." He said softly, climbing into his bed, "Besides, think of your brother and his buddy. Will it be that bad, having your own?"

I stared at him, astonished, then shook my head, "You don't understand. If she can't even perform the simple spell to open the dorm door, how bad will her marks in class be? I can't afford to let my grades drop, Yukiya." I didn't mention that it was the only way to keep my father from nagging me constantly to do something useful with my life—he doesn't seem to understand that I'm not good at social skills and the like, as Percy is, or have the immense magical talent of Klaus. Compared to those two, I'm merely average. Mediocre. Ordinary. And it killed me.

He gave me one last glance and turned onto his side, facing away from me. "Selene is right. You are too obsessed with your grades." He didn't say another word after that

I think this is the closest the two of us have ever come to bickering. I go to the desk and read the magic note—which is from the Headmaster. As substitute prefect, I've got to show the newest student to his office tomorrow morning. That's just _wonderful_. I huff and begin unloading my bag. I've got an hour or two of studying to do before I go to sleep. Snow, the kitten Yukiya found a few months ago that we've been keeping in the room, decides to hop up onto my shoulders and rub her face against my cheek, purring. Normally, this is soothing, but I'm so frustrated and irritated, I can't seem to get much of anything done. Dang it all.

* * *

 **Fun Fact 2** : As it turns out (I was looking at Elias' wikia page) Yukiya and Elias do keep a kitten named Snow in their room, information apparently gotten from the official facebook page. Who knew? I thought it'd be cute to have it around in this, even if we probably won't see much more of Snow. ;)


	3. Chapter 2

Shout out to Daisy Pragnya for being the first reviewer! And note, this chapter is looooong.

* * *

Chapter 2—An Unfriendly Honor Student

Bright and early the next morning, I stood outside the girls' dorm. Unlike Klaus, who is a completely monstrous jerk in the early morning, I've always been an early riser. Why am I here so early? That's a good question. Any other good questions? If you read the last chapter, you should know why I'm here.

And if Selene were here, she'd scold me for being snippy with the reader, because you didn't do anything. Well, she's not here and I'm irritated. Get over it.

Where the heck is that girl? Her name, I believe, is Katalina. Katalina Sommer. From the town of Reitz. And I only know this from the information in the note from the headmaster. And she's taking forever and a day to get out here.

"Hey, isn't that Elias Goldstein?" I heard the confused voice of a girl ask her friend.

"He looks great, so professional, as usual...wonder why he came all the way to the girls' dorm, though?" she responded.

I'm here because that stupid girl hasn't come out yet.

And the other girls coming out of the dorm are talking—it is unusual for me to be here. Even if I'm meeting Selene, it's always someplace else. I can't even remember the last time I neared the girls' dorm. It was probably during that scavenger hunt Selene had me do the second weekend she was here, during her trial. I wish those gossiping girls would shut up. Please shut up. Just ignore me. Please.

"Elias at the girls' dorm in the morning...I wonder what's happening?" I heard a familiar voice say, "Oh, I hope he has news on Selene, I'm worried…"

"Selene? Who's that?"

And there they are. Now, I'm just waiting for them to near the gate. And I actually wish I did have news of Selene and Klaus. They've been gone for a few days already, and not a word. While Selene vanishing for a day or two wouldn't be unexpected, it was unlike my brother to not even send a note.

"She used to be my roommate, before you. She was switched to a different dorm room a while ago. She left suddenly last Friday night and no one's heard from her. Apparently something happened with her brother. But both her and her buddy haven't been seen all week, and it's already Wednesday!"

I turned towards the two—they were close enough—and started walking towards them.

She looked confused, and a little panicked, the Katalina girl. "Huh? What? Huh?" Was she a broken record? For crying in a bucket...wait. When did I start using that? It's one of Selene's phrases…oh gosh...

I stopped right in front of them, "Miss Sommer, I've come to escort you."

"Huh?! M-me?" She sputtered, looking around.

I withheld the urge to sigh, and folded my arms, "...Yes. You." I was starting to get even more irritated than I already was. This incompetent child is my buddy. Mybuddy. It's preposterous! I don't need such a silly buddy, especially a girl like this. She wore her hair in pigtails like a child, and looked like she couldn't be more than twelve. Why was she at this school, even on a trial?

"Wait, wait, Katalina, what's going on here?" Amelia Nile whispered to the new girl.

"D-don't ask me, I have no idea!" she whispered back. Did they not think I could hear them? Idiots.

"Could you hurry up? We need to go." I demanded. I've got things to do, better things than waiting for such a stupid girl to get the message.

"But…" came her weak protest.

"NOW." I said sharply. I could almost feel the metaphorical thing Selene called an "irk mark" on my forehead. She nodded, frightened. Seriously? You're not a child. Grow a spine. I've seen five year olds with more of one. "Come with me."

"O-okay…" she said.

"Katalina? Is this okay?" Amelia said, defensive of the younger girl. She looked up at me, her face a little stern, "And is there any word from Selene? Any at all?" I shook my head.

"Yeah…?" Katalina said hesitantly, "I think? I-I'll see you later, Amelia."

"Alright, then, take care…" She said, a look of worry flashing in her eyes. I'm going to assume it's for Selene and not for the Sommer girl.

I started walking off, followed by the girl. I refused to call her my buddy.

"U-um…" I heard her start. "H-hey...Elias?"

"...Why do you know my name?" I said airily. I don't recall telling her it.

"Oh, sorry, it's just, I heard it from my roommate…"

"I see." I said, not really caring.

"Grr…" She sounded a little miffed at my answer.

As we neared the headmaster's office, she seemed to work up the nerve to speak, "But where are we even going? Can't you tell me?"

We were to close for me to feel like explaining, "If you keep quiet and come with me, you'll see." As I said that, we stopped in front of the door of the headmaster's office.

"This is…?" she prompted.

I ignored her and instead removed my cloak and knocked on the door twice, then announced myself, "It's Elias Goldstein."

"Enter." said the headmaster's deep voice.

"Excuse us." I said, removing all irritation from my voice and pushing open the door, the hinges letting out a low-pitched squealing sound. The girl followed me into the room, where the headmaster sat at his desk.

"Y-you're Headmaster Randolph…!" she said wide-eyed and in awe.

The headmaster smiled, "In the flesh. Welcome, Katalina Sommer, to the Gedonelune Royal Magic Academy."

"N-nice to meet you…! I'm so g-glad to be rejected into—I mean, accepted into the sch—I mean, academy…!" She was a stuttering mess, stumbling over every other word. This is supposed to be my buddy? Good grief.

The headmaster just chuckled, "Quite interesting young lady, if I say so myself."

"S-sorry…!" she looked at the ground, red-faced and clearly mortified with her performance, as she should be.

"At ease, at ease," the headmaster said, "Loosen up a little."

"Ye-yes…" she replied nervously.

The headmaster continued, "Allow me to welcome you to Gedonelune Royal Magic Academy. I wish you a faithful stay from the bottom of my heart."

She smiled, then bowed respectfully, "Thank you very much."

"Well," the headmaster began, "leaving behind the pleasantries, let's get to the heart of the matter."

"Th-that being?" My gosh she's a nervous one, isn't she?

"Normally, buddies aren't decided before the start of the first day. Far from it, there are many students who don't even make buddies before graduating. Of course, it's not unheard of, but it's rare. An exception that proves the rule, more like."

"Buddies?" And of course, she didn't know why she was the source of my current irritation. Airhead.

"Well, since you had your buddy decided before you even got to orientation, I'll explain things. In order."—She glanced over at me, then quickly looked back towards the headmaster. I refused to act as if I even noticed. The headmaster went on, "You see, 'buddies' are a pair randomly chosen from the student body. To say it simply, think of them as magically selected partners."

"A...partner?" She tilted her head, looking confused.

"The reaction between the emblems of two students who can influence each other well decides this. Yesterday, your emblems lit up, didn't they?"

Her eyes lit up with recognition, "Oh!"

"Buddies, you see, are basically stuck in the same boat." The headmaster explained, "For example, if the grades and evaluations of one are bad, well, that hurts the other. Therefore, buddies need to work together to improve one another. A good example is the buddyship are the buddies Klaus Goldstein, Elias' older brother, and Selene Celeste Fonix, a student who was new towards the end of the first quarter of the year. Klaus is the top student, and Selene was a self-taught wizardess from Terra whose magical education was splotchy, and her grades at first suffered greatly for it. Klaus began to tutor her and her grades improved dramatically in a fairly short time. Not all buddy pairs are like that, mind, most are fairly equal in their grades and abilities." Why? Of all the examples, why bring up the pair I'm worried most about at this time? Why?

She furrowed her eyes, "Huh. Wait. What?! Wait, wait, and my 'buddy' is…?!" She glanced at me as I glared at her, thinking she was a moron for how long it took before she finallyfigured it out. She gulped.

"That's right." The headmaster said cheerfully, "Elias has been chosen as your buddy."

She looked horrified. How rude. "But that's…! Wait, so that means if my grades are bad…"

"...they'll affect mine." I sighed.

Her face completely fell, "Aww…" Then she steeled herself and smiled a bit, "...I'll do my best."

The headmaster smiled reassuringly, "You don't have to look so anxious! I think you two can handle it. Right, Elias?"

I mentally rolled my eyes—to be rude to the headmaster was a no-go. "I doubt it. It all depends on her."

Her eyes widened, like she felt pressured. Good. She should be. "...Um," she changed the topic, "if you don't mind me asking, why did a novice wizardess like me get the Acceptance Letter?"

The headmaster raised an eyebrow, then smiled, "Listen, Miss Sommer, what's on the surface isn't everything."

And back came her confused look. It seems her facial expressions are limited. "...What do you mean by that, sir?"

"Enough, enough," he waved off her inquiry, "you won't improve by just asking questions, you know."

"U-understood…"

"Oh," he said, like he just remembered something, "Take another good look at your acceptance letter.

"Huh?" she looked through her bag and pulled out a piece of paper, then reread it, a look of surprise coming onto her face. "This is…!" she paused, "Provisional?!"

I cleared my throat in surprise, a bit shocked. Did she seriously…? "Didn't you even know that? Those invited to the academy are given a period of thirteen school days. At the end of this period, after everything they've learned, they're put before the Scale of Judgement to determine their suitability for the academy. Only those who passed through the trial can officially enter the academy." This wasn't entirely true. There were a few other methods of entering the academy, like if you enter under the age of thirteen (meaning at ten, eleven, or twelve—those who are invited at that age are not common, and they normally are kids of extreme or very unique/strong magical abilities, and it's more because they need to learn to control their magic before they destroy things or hurt people by accident than anything, in most cases), or if you pass a super-difficult exam (which has a written part and a practical part, and difficulty can vary depending on age and whatnot). There's a few other, less likely ways, like the legacy clause (have had at least three immediate family members attend previously) and such. But the way most got in was through the trial process.

"A five-star explanation. I'd expect nothing less from you, Elias." the headmaster complimented.

"Anyone could explain this," I dismissed, "Besides, isn't not noticing that 'provisional' was written the read problem here?" I glanced at the girl out of the corner of my eye, and saw her gulp and have a slightly hurt look on her face.

"So," she said, sounding depressed, "I'm not actually an official student yet…?"

"Exactly. After thirteen days, your future will be decided." the headmaster confirmed, "You arrived at the academy yesterday, and you came on a weekday, so that it was counted as your first day. Today's the second. You can't afford to take it easy, young lady."

"Thirteen days…" she sighed, sounding hopeless.

"Listen closely, Miss Sommer. If you follow your heart, a path will open." he said gently.

She looked up again, "Follow my...heart?" A voice that only I could hear giggled at that.

Authoress: It is called Taming a Wizardess' (Heart)!

Shut up Authoress. No one asked for your input.

Authoress: Eh, get over it Eli. It's during a chapter. I'm in control at this point. ;) Enders are a different matter.

Moving on from the strange writer and her butting in, let's get back to the story.

"Let me ask you a question, Miss Sommer. To you, what is magic?"

And back came the confused look. "Huh?" Then she looked like she was deep in thought.

"No answer?" the headmaster asked a few minutes later.

"Sorry…"

The headmaster dismissed her apology, "For now, that's fine. You've got room to grow. Take the time to find yourself, to find out what magic is to you."

"I...I will." She said.

"Now, I ask that you work with Elias to make this a good thirteen days."

She suddenly smiled wide, "I'll do my best!" she declared.

"And Elias," And I'm pretty sure I didn't imagine the look he gave me. I cleared my face of emotion, doing a pretty good imitation of my brother. "Make sure to help Miss Sommer, too."

"Understood." I said after a pause.

…. …. ….

"Excuse me." I said with a bow. I then turned and left. Does my brother really sit through that with each new student? No wonder he's always so crabby. To hear the same orientation again and again and again...geesh.

"Oh! Ah, um, e-excuse me!" I heard her say to the headmaster as I walked out the door.

"Elias! Wait up!" I heard her cry. Oh great, she's coming after me now.

"...Don't follow me." I said with a sigh.

"But, but, we're in the same class, aren't we?" Oh gosh, is she really panting a little after a run of, what, ten feet? Talk about pathetic. But what she said is true. She probably doesn't know the way to the classroom. It does make sense she'd follow me. "And, you know, we're buddies…" and then she went and brought that up. Just when I was about to show her to class.

I stopped and turned slowly to face her, "Why are youmy buddy?"

"Why are youmy buddy?" She asked back, sounding depressed.

"I can't believe this." I ran a hand through my hair and turned back around, starting to walk again.

"Well," she called after me, "we can't do anything about it, right? So, we might as well, um, get along?" If you're going to say something like that, don't sound as if you're unsure of yourself.

"Don't slow me down." was all I said.

She made a surprised noise.

"...If you're late, so am I. Could you hurry up?" I did my best not to snap at her, but I'm not sure how successful I was. Why does the headmaster's office have to be on the other side of the school from my classroom?

"Okay, okay…" she said mournfully, hurrying to catch up with me. About a minute later: "Hey, the headmaster asked me a while ago, right? 'What is magic to you…?'"

"And?" Does this have and relevance to right now?

"Elias, what is magic to you?" she asked me.

The word slipped out of my mouth before I could even realize I spoke, "Power."

"Power…" she repeated.

"Is something wrong with that?"

"Well, no, not really, but…" she paused, "But, like, saying 'power' seems kind of concerning…"

"...Says the girl who couldn't even give an answer."

I think she just growled at me. Is she a kid?

"I don't find it wrong to desire power." Thinking on it a little, magic waspower. The power to heal and to hurt. The power to protect and defend, the power to attack and destroy. It's a tool, and it's only as good or bad as the wielder who chooses how to use it.

"Is that so…" she said, apparently losing interest.

And now I had a question to ask her in return. "Just why do you want to enter this school so much, anyway?"

"Well, you know…" she began, then trailed off.

"Why?" I asked again.

"Well, I really look up to Serge Durandal. So one day, I want to become a great wizardess, just like him." Nevermind the fact that he's a wizard, not a wizardess.

"Hmm...so you admire someone you haven't even seen or even met." Someone who's been completely MIA for the past five years, since a certain incident, actually.

"Well, yeah! Is that so wrong?" She defended.

"Not really." Though he's not as great as he's made out to be. He's pretty much a spazzy scatterbrain, for all that his mind is able to work like that of a genius. "Not interested." And not that I'd tell her, but her 'hero' is a murderer.

I could almost feel her indignance as we continued on to the classroom in silence.

As we neared it, I started hearing people whisper.

"Oh, they're here! Is thatElias' buddy?" said one girl. Seriously, there seems to be no way to keep a secret in this academy. This place has more holes to leak through than a sieve!

"She's so...so plain." said another girl. What does the way she looks have anything to do with the price of tea in Terra? I'm more worried about her magical abilities.

"But like," whispered a boy, "I heard their emblems shone on the first day...that was quicker than even the Emperor's lighting up with his buddy."

"A buddy like Elias," said his friend. "That doesn't seem like a cakewalk, no sir, especially without Selene to curb his sharp tongue."

"True," said the first boy, "without Selene here to reprimand him, that poor girl will be ripped to shreds. I wonder how much she'll be able to take."

The girl, Miss Sommer, was starting to get a frightened look in her eye. I'm not that bad…

"There's the classroom." I said simply, pointing out the door just in front of us.

"Oh, yeah…" she said hesitantly.

"Yo, Prince Elias." And suddenly I felt a headache coming on. Why? Why now?

I sighed, "...Luca."

My...buddysuddenly looked like she was irritated, "Luca…!"

"Huh?" Luca said, like he hadn't got a clue, "Looks like you've got a familiar face with you."

Honestly, the girl reminded me a bit of a chipmunk with her cheeks all puffed up in anger like that, "Not just 'familiar'! You lured me straight to the boys' dorm yesterday!"

Luca grinned, and laughed a bit, "How was it, Kittycat? Fun?" And what's with the nickname? I would never understand Luca's love of giving people nicknames—Selene was Little Vixen, I was, to my great irritation, Prince Elias, and now Sommer is Kittycat? Seriously?

"Far from it! It was awful!" She really needed to work on her glaring skills...it was almost comical watching her try.

"Now, now," Luca said easily, "calm down, calm down. It was just a joke, right, Kittycat?"

"It wasn't just a joke!" she snapped.

"But look, thanks to that, you got to be Elias' buddy, right?" He pointed out. Now I was glaring at him.

"So you already know." I said cooly, my glare even.

"You just confirmed the words around the academy saying you are." He smirked, "His Royal Majesty Elias, Crown Prince of the Academy, is buddies with a normal girl. That's the most fantastic thing since Selene and the Emperor!"

"I've said this countless times," I said wearily, "but would you stop calling me that? I'm not a prince or a member of the royal family. Just because Selene isn't here doesn't mean you can start that up again. Besides, don't you think that it's irreverent to the actual throne?"

"Haha! 'Irreverent'! I love it, it's like you're a generation behind!" Luca cackled, "Besides, Selene didn't tell me to stop because of the royal family, seeing as she's all 'freedom! equality! democracy! individual rights!' and all—she told me to stop because it irks you. And while the fire's away, the ice does play!"

I hated him. I really did. I don't know why Selene puts up with him, I really don't. So much raw magical talent and power was wasted with this good-for-naught.

Miss Sommer was staring at the floor nervously, apparently no longer mad about Luca's "prank." Selene did tell me once that whenever Luca and I started bickering, that the air got really intense around us.

"By the way, Luca." I said drily, "Class is about to start, but you seem to be going somewhere?"

"Oh?" He responded, like he hadn't noticed, "Well, yeah, I was just going to, you know, skip, like usual."

"Skipping class." I deadpanned, "Again."

"Listen, Prince Elias," he reasoned, "we underachievers have problems you overachievers just don't get, y'know?" We stared at each other, my face blank and unamused, his smiling goofily.

"U-um...hey, how about we just go inside? Okay?" The girl pretty much caught in between our argument said nervously.

"Really? I was just gonna go goof off…" he pouted, like a child denied dessert.

"But, well...today's lesson will probably be really fun!" She said, trying to make it sound tempting. She was trying so hard, and without any of the progress Selene would've made. Selene normally said simply, 'Luca. In class. Now.' and was done with it. Then again, Selene had perfected the art that most girls don't until they're mothers—the you-will-listen-and-not-argue-or-you'll-regret-it-do-you-understand-me? Voice.

"Oh? 'Fun'?" Luca sounded amused at her attempts at convincing him to go to class. He then walked around Miss Sommer, inspecting her from head to toe.

She looked like she felt really awkward and unsure what to make of it, "Umm…?"

"Oh," Luca waved it away like it was nothing, "it's just, I was wondering why you got chosen as Prince Elias' buddy."

She bit her bottom lip, "I don't even know…"

He raised an eyebrow, amused, "Ohh? Huh. Y'know, you're kinda interesting, and pretty cute, too."

And her confused look has returned. "Huh?"

"Yeah...I feel like I've gotta know." Know what? What is he talking about, I wonder?

"About…?" she asked.

"About you." He said flirtatiously, smiling at her and looking her straight in the eyes, "All about you." All of a sudden, I felt really uncomfortable, no matter that I didn't show it.

She had a pink tinge on her cheeks and still didn't seem to know what was happening, "U-um…"

Then Luca nodded, clearing reaching some sort of decision, "Hmm...I might even stay for class." I nearly snorted. He had some sort of motive, that was clear.

Her eyes widened in surprise, "Huh?!"

"Yep, that's how it is." He glanced at me, and apparently my repulsion and suspicion was visible on my face, because he added, "C'mon, Prince Elias! Don't make that face, man!"

I twisted my face then into one of my brother's specialties—one of bored irritation, "...Next time you call me that, I'll incinerate you with fire spells."

"Haha! I'd better watch my back!" He laughed, "But now look who's saying things Selene wouldn't approve of."

"Selene approves of most anything to do with fire, Luca! Remember?" Called out a student walking into the classroom, causing her friend to giggle.

"That's mostly because she herself is fire-proof." the other girl snickered.

"Though that one eyebrow spell does seem to be a favorite threat of hers. I wonder if she's actually acted upon it?"

"I've no doubt she has." The two girls laughed again.

Miss Sommer looked nervously between the two of us. I went ahead and walked in with a dignified silence to me. I assume she followed quickly after, from the "Well, Kittycat, I'll have to talk to you later." from a leaving Luca. The students were chattering, as per usual. Yukiya was in his seat by the window—his wolf was actually with him today, which was rare. Since Selene had left, no one had sat in her seat, so it was empty, sadly. I missed her, to be honest, and knew I wasn't the only one.

"Yukiya…" Miss Sommer sounded a little relieved.

"What, you know Yukiya?" I said, surprised.

"Ah, yeah, we met in the courtyard yesterday." That must have been while she was wandering around lost, looking for the dorm.

I glanced back at her and she looked curious, but also a little guilty for feeling curious, "...So, is everyone keeping away from Yukiya?" Ah, that's right. Despite Selene's constant refutals of Yukiya being cursed, most people still tended to avoid him. Gossip was strong. "It almost looks like there's an invisible wall around him…"

"...Yes." I answered carefully, "People, for some reason, think he's got a curse on him, so everyone tries to stay away from him like that, despite obvious logic showing he's not cursed in any way."

"A curse?"

"He's ignored by everything like that because of the 'curse'." I explained.

"That's terrible." She said, sounding upset.

"Yes." I said, "How ridiculous."

"Huh?" She looked at me, as if surprised that I agreed.

"Anyone shouldknow that a curse—which I severely doubt he has one, anyway—is nothing like a cold, it's very irrational to physically stay away from him because of that belief. We've shared a room at the dormitory for nearly a year and a half, but I've never experienced any actual harm by his so-called 'curse,' not once. He's quiet and clean, the perfect roommate for me, instead. And Selene, who spends a good deal of time with him, is also entirely unaffected by anything but her own brand of insanity. But she's had that since long before we've known her."

"Perfect, huh…" she mumbled, then looked at me, "And could you maybe tell me a bit about this Selene girl I've been hearing about? Amelia said it was a previous roommate of her's who hasn't been seen since last week, but I don't really know anything about who she is, and her name seems to keep popping up."

I inhaled, "Selene Celeste Fonix is a foreign student from Terra who was accepted into the school towards the end of the first quarter. She's got an extreme talent in fire magic, far beyond anything taught here, and it quite literally works however she can imagine it—and her imagination is quite extensive. She's also quite a social bee, and is friends with most everyone. She's a good friend of mine, Yukiya's, and Luca. She also happens to be the buddy of my brother, Klaus, the prefect. She had a family emergency towards the end of last week, and is currently back in Terra. No one is quite sure as to when she's returning. That is her seat,"—I pointed to the desk in front of Yukiya's—"so I recommend you choose another."

She nodded, then started going towards Yukiya. As she got closer, I heard the whispers of the classmates. Idiots. I decided to follow her, "Hey, Yukiya." I said casually.

"Hello, Yukiya." She said, all cheery.

He looked over, face blank. But I knew him well enough to see the confusion in his eyes, "...Huh? Who're you?"

Her smile faltered a little, "What do you mean, 'who'? Don't you remember me? When we met in the courtyard yesterday, you gave me directions to the dorm."

"Did I?" He sounded interested, but I could tell that he was genuinely trying to remember. Oops. Perhaps I should have warned her that Yukiya was kind of a dreamer and tended to forget things that didn't really stick out to him. It took him a while to remember Selene, even, in the beginning. And she's pretty memorable.

"Wha…" she looked a little hurt, but kept up her smile.

I found it all a little funny, honestly, "Looks like you left a weak impression." She sent me a look that told me she, in fact, didn't find it funny at all.

"So, who are you?" Yukiya said with a slight tilt to his head.

"I'm a new student in this academy, starting today." She said patiently.

"A 'provisional' one, though." I added.

I think she just growled at me (again) for bringing it up. This is too good.

"...That so." You couldn't even bother putting an 'Is' before that, could you, Yukiya? At this point, she was looking completely crestfallen. Then she turned her attention to his familiar.

"Oh, Mr. Wolf," she said, "thanks so much for yesterday…" Okay, then...she was talking to the wolf. Why was she talking to the wolf? I mean, it probably understood her, but it's not like it could really respond or anything. In fact, the wolf raised his its head and gave her what had to have been an uninterested look, then turned away. Like Master like Familiar, I guess.

"You're talking...to an animal." I tried to make it sound like I didn't think she was crazy. I did. Yukiya just looked at her. I don't think I succeeded.

"H-hey," she said nervously, "Don't look at me like that...!"

"You certainly are a weird one." It slipped out before I realized what I was saying. Oops.

She wrinkled her nose, like she was offended. Honestly, getting called 'weird' was a compliment, according to Selene. "Okay. Listen!" she said, suddenly all seriousness, "I have the magical ability to talk with animals!"

"Oh…?" I wasn't quite sure if I believed her, as the ability to talk with animals was extremely rare. Then again, no one had ever literally been able to play with fire like Selene. It was a possibility that Miss Sommer was telling the truth. The academy had plenty of students with rare or unique abilities, particularly compared to other magical schools—the Vir Ingeniosus class testified to that. But, she could have also thought that they were speaking back, like a child. It could be either-or, really.

"Really?" Yukiya said, now sounding mildly interested—which meant he was pretty interested, for Yukiya.

"But, um...Mr. Wolf here keeps ignoring me…" she said, not sounding all to confident. Whether that was because she was lying or because she just wasn't a very confident person, I wouldn't tell.

"...I see." Yukiya said. Op, there goes his interest.

"Oh, yeah!" She said, sounding like she remembered something, "There's something I wanted to ask you two."

"What?" I asked. What did she want to know?

"Last night," she began, "I could hear this strange song before I slept...do you think it meant something?"

That got Yukiya's attention, because his eyes widened. She continued, "My roommate said she didn't hear anything, but I know I did…"

"I've no idea." I replied, "Perhaps you simply dreamt it?"

"Mmm, well, I guess I felt drowsy, but…but I really do think I heard it."

"But you're getting less and less confident." I pointed out. And she was.

"What's your name?" Yukiya suddenly said. This took both me and the girl aback a bit.

"Huh? Me?" She then shook her head, as if she couldn't believe he didn't remember, "Katalina Sommer. Try not to forget about me this time, okay?"

"Sommer, huh. Got it." He said simply. He really didn't mince words. And his actions, going from completely uninterested to now, seemed to confuse her.

Then the bell rang, signaling that it was time, "Classes are starting. Get yo your seat." I told her, then started towards my own.

"Oh, uh, yeah!" She asked Yukiya if the seat next to him was taken, and he shook his head. She slid into the seat just as Professor Schuyler walked in. At the beginning of the last quarter, the order of our classes had been mixed up a little, and we now had a different kind of schedule.

"Before we begin…" he said, "Katalina Sommer."

"Y-yes sir!" She stood up, sounding a bit flustered. I resisted the urge to laugh.

"You're the new provisional student, correct?" the professor inquired.

"Yes, that's...right." This girl really needed to work on her confidence. It was pretty pathetic, honestly.

"I am Conrad Schuyler. I teach the classes on practical magics and specific magical objects."

"Yes, Mr. Schuyler." Doesn't she know that the teachers are supposed to be addressed by "professor" not "Mr."?

"I'll say this now. Unlike those other classes, my class won't be easy to pass." the professor sniped, "Prepare yourself."

"Y-yes sir!" she squeaked. I suppose that I could cut her some slack—Professor Schuyler was probably the most intimidating teacher in the school.

"Good. Now, you may sit. Time to begin."

The lesson began. Today's subject was the Persona Mirror—a creation of my father's. It revealed the true self of the one who it reflected.

When the professor mentioned who the creator was, I heard Miss Sommer make a confused noise, then Luca, who sat in the seat in front of her, whispered, "Hey Katalina,"—why was the moron acting so familiar with her? Has he no manners?—"did ya know? Walter Goldstein is Elias' father!"

"Ohhh! I see!" she whispered back.

Luca continued, "Inventing a magical tool that powerful...the distinguished family, the Goldsteins are worthy of the authority of the wizards' world, huh?" He then raised his voice, "Elias' dad and big brothers are all so magnificent, I can't tell you just how envious I am." Luca? Envious? What a joke. He had all this natural talent and no pressure to succeed. To be a Goldstein meant you had to be the best of the best of the best, no excuses. It's never been a picnic, nor will it ever be. But Luca's declaration made me mad, for some reason.

I turned around and hissed, "Luca, shut up. We're in the middle of class."

"Oh, was I interrupting Mr. Honor Student's class? My deepest apologies." His tone was sickly innocent. Oh how I loathed him. At least the professor has now caught on.

"You! Over there! Quiet down! This is my classroom. If you're going to fool around, shall I have you do it outside?"

"I'm sorry, sir." I apologized for him.

"Alright, alright, I'll keep quiet." Luca sighed.

The professor continued the lesson, "Now, the Persona Mirror was originally made to see through criminals' lies." Ha. I don't even think it's ever been used for that—far to valuable. "Currently, it's being kept in the headmaster's office in this very academy." What? I didn't know that...since when…?

"So, Miss Sommer." Uh-oh. He was calling on her to answer a question. This couldn't be good.

"Y-yes?" she answered nervously.

"Time for review." Really? Review what? This is her first lesson...though, honestly, she should've studied before getting to this point. Unless it's on something we just went over. Then she should be fine. "Who made the Persona Mirror?" If she didn't get this she was an idiot.

"Walter Goldstein!" She said, finally with a bit of confidence. Only thing is, it was an obvious answer. If I had to guess, it was because he knew she had been talking.

"Correct." the professor said simply, "Now, there is another magical tool in the form of a mirror. Just what mirror is it? Elias, answer." Now it was my turn, it seemed. I stood up.

"Yes." I said, "Other than the Persona Mirror, there's the Procle Mirror. The Procle Mirror is able to display faraway places. However, unlike the Persona Mirror, a magical incantation is needed to make it work. Furthermore, though it's not a mirror, there is a magical tool that has a similar function—the Tears of Spectrum. By dropping a single tear into a jug of water, we can achieve the same effect as the Procle Mirror. However, this effect can only be used once. There's also the fact that the surface of the water is less stable and reliable than a solid device like a mirror, making it more difficult to cast and maintain the needed spell, though it is an easier method to obtain." I didn't mention anything pertaining to the Terran Technology, where a few taps on a screen could let you contact a similar device anywhere else of the planet—or, in the case of the modified devices that Selene's brother, Merlin, had made, between the Myulan and Terran dimensions.

"Good. You may be seated. Very scholarly of you to have researched as far as the Tears of Spectrum."

"Thank you." I said, then sat down. That was fairly high praise coming from this particular professor.

"Now then, I'll have you all take a little quiz. As Elias mentioned, the Tears of Spectrum are a more common item, and can be reproduced. Some of the advanced potions classes at the academy do learn how to make them. You each will actually use a single drop of the Tears of Spectrum to display your room in the dormitory." This will be simple. "Incidentally, this batch was brewed by one of the students of this classroom, Miss Fonix, under the guidance of her buddy." Oh yeah. I forgot he had taught her how to do that a few weeks ago.

"A...a pop quiz!" I heard Miss Sommer gasp dramatically, though quietly. This will hopefully show that she's not hopeless in magic, but after the whole walking door incident yesterday...what kind of spell even was that? It made no sense. It was like she gave life to the door.

"Alright, come to the front in seat order." Student by student, most of the class went up and performed the spell. It was a simple spell, the hardest component being concentration. Yukiya's image shook a little, but he still didn't like using his magic to much, despite Selene's constant encouragement. He had some sort of dislike for his own magic, which was strange to me. But it was his thing to deal with. He got deducted some points either way. Next, it was my turn, since Selene's seat was empty. I was worried about her. And Klaus. I hadn't heard a word from either of them since last weekend, and it's now Wednesday.

No. I can't think about them right now. I've got to focus on school.

I went up to the front of the room and dripped a single drop of the potion into the jug. "Wideo Procle." I said, waving my wand. There appeared the image of my room, clear and still. I saw Snow hop onto Yukiya's bed and try and bat at the picture. Not sure why Snow was able to tell about the magic being worked, but cats are funny that way. They seem to follow their own set of rules.

"Very by the book. Ninety points." the professor said. I sighed inwardly.

Luca was next. He sauntered up to the front, taking his own sweet time. Only, he didn't cast the spell. "Veltex." he said, waving his wand. The water in the jug started swirling like a little whirlpool. "Hover." With another wave of the wand, the whirling water rose to the air. Another wave of the wand, "Screen." The water formed a round, flat disk in midair. Then he said the proper incantation. "Wideo Procle." He lightly tapped the water mirror with his wand, and it showed a clear image of his room. And it was entirely empty. No personal items. It might have been an unused dorm room..

"Awesome…!" I heard by new buddy whisper. Luca's magic was incredible. Incredibly wasteful.

Clearly the professor agreed with my sentiment. "Zero points. Who told you to do that in such a roundabout way like that? Do it normally next time."

"Yeah, yeah, my bad." Luca shrugged as he went back to his seat, not caring. Must be nice not to have to stress over every grade. Slacker.

"However," the professor continued, "The spell itself was superb. Elias' spell, on the other hand, was precise." So why'd I get marked down?! "I'd even say exemplary. However, it had some arrogance in it. Luca's spell, though, has great originality, and he has the ability to make it work." Now I wanted to throw something. I had spent a week perfecting that spell, and it's now apparently arrogant?! While that lay-about's spell has "great originality?!" In what way is that even fair?! I looked at the ground, trying to hide any and all emotion. Honestly, what the professor said hurt.

The professor then called up that buddy of mine.

She said, "M-me?" like it was a surprise. Was she even paying attention?! She rushed to the front, looking extremely nervous. I had a bad feeling about this. She dripped a drop into the jug, and pulled up a sleeve, readying her wand and taking a deep breath, "...I command thee, reveal lands far away! Wideo Procle!" A ball of light flew from the end of her hand and into the jug. What is she doing? The next moment, the water began to float up. She looked as confused as I felt as a jelly-like ball of water began to float to the center of the room. Then it burst. Meaning, it scattered freezing drops over the entire class. And, to make it stranger, the little drops began hopping about, miniature frog-shaped, causing havoc in the classroom. After a few hops, the frog-shaped water turned into drops and back to normal water. While she started to apologize profusely, Luca started laughing hysterically. I felt an irk mark, as Selene would put it, almost literally appear on my forehead. Luca is an idiot. And what kind of magic was that, anyway?! It made absolutely no sense!

"Zero point!" The professor snapped, making her flinch, "I don't even know where to begin!" the bell that marked the end of class rang. "Now, you can can stay behind and clean up. Elias, you two are buddies, so you stay too."

"What…?!" I exclaimed. And now I've been dragged into her mess! Dang her, this cuts into my study time! I clenched my fist angrily, nails beginning to dig into my palm, as I glared at her. She looked completely downtrodden and a little scared. As she should be!

And so, we had to mop up the classroom. By hand. No magic allowed. Not like I'd chance her using her wacky magic.

"This should finish it." I said with a sigh, putting down my mop.

"I'm sorry…" she said, not meeting my eyes, looking at the floor.

"And I told you not to drag me down, too…!" I scolded her, my arms folded.

"I'm really sorry…"

"'Sorry' becomes useless when you use it to much. Perhaps you should make it to where you don't have to apologize." I pinched the bridge of my nose between my thumb and forefinger, "I don't even want to think about what lies ahead." I snatched up my stuff and hurried out of the classroom.

I made it to my next class, apologized for being tardy, and sat down. Luca wasn't here, I noticed. One less headache for me, I guess. Soon after, that useless buddy of mine came in, looking depressed. I didn't even visibly acknowledge her presence the rest of the day, and thankfully she wasn't called on again. We had two subs, apparently, since the headmaster had something headmaster-related to do, and Professor Merkulova had to take care of a combat student who was injured in class. She went through the same introductory thing in Professor G's class, though.

Types of Magic had been Selene's favorite class of the ones she currently had. She had once told me that she loved learning about the more rare and less used types of magic, and they were a lot of what she studied on her own before coming to the academy. I hope she was alright.

…. …. ….

After classes were over, I realized I had left one of my reference books in the practical magic classroom. I went back to go get it, but someone was in the room. Sommer.

"Aw, did I mess up again?" She sighed as I walked into the classroom. Then she noticed me, "Oh, Elias…"

"You stayed behind?" I couldn't quite keep the surprise out of my voice.

"Yeah," she replied, "I thought it'd be best if I did some reviewing…"

"Huh." Color me mildly impressed.

"And you, Elias?" she then asked.

"I came to retrieve a book. That's all."

"O-oh…"

I looked in the little desk cubby where I sat. Aha. There it was. I grabbed it and headed towards the door, "Well, see you tomorrow." Then I left.

I next went to my usual classroom and set everything up to work on my current magic tool project.

…. …. ….

I was back in the dorm shortly before curfew. I made my way to my room, and found Yukiya already sleeping, or appearing to. He went to bed early most nights and was gone, oftentimes, before even I was up. I once asked him why he got up so early, I mean, I was up far earlier than most people myself, but he took it to the pre-crack-of-dawn early. He replied something along that lines of "Farmer's hours." I guess his family farmed or something, then. He didn't talk much of his family.

Snow as curled up on my pillow as I set my stuff up on the desk. I sat down and began reviewing my notes. It'd be a few hours before I got in bed. Sleep wasn't important compared to making up the lost studying time from herbungle earlier.

* * *

Fun Fact 3: This is the longest chapter in the story at 21 pages (7543 words). The next longest one is Chapter 8 at 17 pages.


	4. Chapter 3

Daisy Pragnya: I'm glad you like Snow. I'm pretty sure she makes brief appearances in a couple of the other chapters, and I'm thinking of maybe making her have a small part to play in Elemental.

* * *

Chapter 3—Unmelting Heart

I didn't even bother trying to pick her up today. She should know her way around by now and if she doesn't, that's her problem.

I made it to the classroom a little later than I usually did—I had slept in almost twenty minutes, due to staying up a bit later than usual. Time lost cannot be recovered, can it? And to make matter's worse, I noticed that my uniforms were starting to get a bit short. I'm going to have to get longer pants soon. Selene will probably moan and groan about how I'm taller than her—we used to be the same height. Now, a few months later, I'm noticeably taller than she is. If you ask her what her biggest physical flaw is, she'd probably say her height. She hates being short, and Klaus makes fun of her for it, calling her "Shortie" as they banter. To most, it'd look like bickering when the two of them trade phrases, but I can see the gleam in Klaus' eye and the playful anger of Selene's dramatic hand (and sometimes full-body) motions. I wish Klaus would just ask her out already.

When I got to the classroom door, I noticed that those ridiculous flower sisters had surrounded Sommer. I hung back, not entering quite yet. My guess is that they're doing what they did to Selene all those months ago. I'm actually, for reasons unknown, interested to see how she handles it.

"You're Katalina, right?" said the first one. Honestly, I won't remember which is which until they do that name announcement thing they like to do. I try and pay as little attention to them as possible.

"Oh…?" she replies,looking up, "Y-yes, do you need something?"

One of the other two girls spoke, "Hey, don't you think you're letting being Elias' Buddy get to your head?" Of course, it's always about me with them. So annoying. As much as Selene liked to tease me about it, she even got genuinely annoyed with them a lot, and she's pretty good-natured.

"Huh?! Get to my head?!" Was it just me or did she seem a little indignant? She took a breath, "Um, listen...just who are you girls, anyway?"

"We are…!" began the third girl.

"Rose!" Girl one.

"Lily!" Girl two.

"Violet!" And the third one.

Ironically, it was the one with the greenish hair called Violet, while the one called Rose actually had the purplish-black hair. Huh. Never noticed that before.

"Listen!" and here's the start of the rant, as per usual, leading with Rose. "Be amazed and delighted because we're the three who put even flowers to shame!" Pfft. You wish.

Part two, the annoying part, was given by Lily. "For the noble of the academy! For our dashing ice prince, Elias!"

And the location bit, from Violet, "We'll come from the valley in the north to the forest in the east! No land is too far!"

"We are called…" And here's the group name. "Elias'! Number! One! Fans!" How many times have I heard this speal, now? Seriously, if you're going to waste my time, at least switch it up once and a while, will you?

Sommer seemed unsure of what to do. She even seemed a little awed. I guess to someone who wasn't used to the flower sisters, they're synchronization would be impressive—until you deal with them more than a few times.

"Listen up!" Rose continued, "Elias is the heir to the prestigious Goldstein family!" I wish! Forget about those two older, much more talented brothers of mine, did you? "And to think he's buddies with some country bum like you...it doesn't even make sense!" As much as I agreed about the 'not-making-sense' bit, I couldn't help but get annoyed at the country-kid slur. My two best friends came from the country. Well, Selene said she was almost from the country, but it was close enough. If anything, people from the country work harder than those from the city, as a general thing, so you can't really call them "bums."

"Yeah! That's right!" "No sense!" the other two parroted.

"Y-yeah…?" Sommer replied with a hint of 'no duh' in her tone. "...But, it doesn't really matter where we grew up, does it?" Why is it that she's a little more confident when facing these girls then with me? I feel a bit offended. I am not that scary! At least in comparison to Klaus, I'm not...really…okay, maybe a little, to those who don't know me...but still! The flower sisters looked stunned that the timid-seeming girl had stood up to them a bit, and wasn't done yet, "Elias is probably much better at casting spells than me, but as long as we're here, we're both just students. Equals. Social class has no place here." I almost laugh. I think she and Selene would get along well. Of course, Selene gets along with most people, but nonetheless...

The oldest almost flinched, probably remembering the scolding she'd gotten from Selene about a month ago about that very subject, "Hmph..well, what you're saying isn't _totally_ wrong…"

"Don't just give in to her!" the next oldest cried, causing her sister to snap out of it.

"Nn...anyway! We don't accept you as being buddies with Elias!"

 _Again, you're morons,_ I think. _Buddies can't be changed to cancelled. Do you not remember Selene asking the same thing early on?_

"Yeah!" the youngest spoke up, "So don't get carried away, you, you…" she scrambled for a word, "you amateur!" I almost snorted.

Sommer seemed to get a bit ticked at that, "D-don't…" she trailed off.

"Hmm? What's that?" the oldest sister said, sounded pleased, "Did we hit the nail on the head so hard you can't say anything back?"

The girl in the chair had enough, and stood up suddenly, almost shouting. "Don't mess with me like that!"

A classmate bumped into me when he came into the doorway, muttering an apology. I shook my head, realizing that I should probably get to my desk, and started towards it.

"What?" I heard a sister say, sounding surprised.

It seemed Sommer wasn't done yet, "I'd listened to what you had to say...but listen, yeah, I know, I'm an amateur! I know I'm new!" Huh. Maybe she had a bit of spine after all, when provoked. "But it's not like I became Elias' buddy because I wanted to, okay?! I didn't ask anyone! If I could give this position away, heck! I'd wrap it up with a ribbon on top and hand it over with a smile! Elias just gives smug lectures, he's mean, he's stubborn, he's cold…!"

I had been behind her on the way to my chair when she said that. I froze, clenched my teeth, and feeling my face morph into glare. I couldn't keep it out of my voice either. "Well, excuse me for being mean, stubborn, and cold." That was mean of her to say. It's not like I try to be mean or cold. It actually hurts a bit to hear her say it so forcefully. Stubborn I can handle, because I am, but the other two...I don't know why what she said hurt so much, like little needles being stabbed into my heart and then yanked out, taking a second for the pain to sink in.

She froze at the sound of my voice, "Huh…?!" She oh-so-slowly turned around. "E-elias…" she looked mortified, probably because I'd heard.

"Pleasure to see you, Sommer." I said, my words sickly sweet. I could feel my eyebrow twitching with anger.

Anger the sisters could clearly sense. "W-we were just about to leave...!" the ringleader said. "Y-yeah!" "Bye bye!"

"Quite the words you had to say about your buddy." I folded my arms, keeping my voice icily cordial.

She scrambled for words, "I'm sorry...l-look, there's a reason for all this…"

"A reason?" I said, "I don't know what reason you're talking about, but hearing someone talk behind my back isn't the most laudable act." I can't remember the last time I felt this irritated, not even when Selene pulled one of her ridiculous "You study too much!" schemes.

"Sorry…" she looked genuinely sorry. I've no doubt that her words were more due to provocation than anything. But that's no excuse. This is why we think before we speak.

I sighed, forcing all my anger back inside, where it belongs. Where I will make it stay. "Well, it's not like it matters, anyway. Next time, if you're going to talk bad about me, do it someplace I'm not around." If I can't hear it, it can't hurt me, after all. I went back to my seat, inwardly fuming. Seriously, she doesn't need to be so rude! I could hear her sit down, and slide her chair in.

"What's this? Arguing first thing in the morning, Kittycat?" Oh no...the one thing, or person, rather, that can make this all worse! _Lovely_! Please, notice the absolute sarcasm of that word.

"...Luca." I heard her sigh, sounding resigned.

"Isn't it bad for buddies to argue?" he said, sounding like it was all a joke. Everything was a joke with that moron and his unfair share of magical talent.

"W-well, it's kind of complicated…" Oh sure, just take the easy route out!

"Complicated, huh?" he sounded amused. Ugh.

"Well, yeah…! I mean, uh, nothing…" By sky, girl, if you don't know what to say just don't say anything! At this rate, her constant usage of filler words is going to drive me crazier!

Yikes. I'm starting to think I'm spending too much time with Selene. I just used used two Selene-isms in two sentences.

"C'mon, no need to be shy." Luca prodded.

"...Luca, are you going to stay for class?" Well that was an obvious change of subject.

"Well, usually I skip Potion's when I can 'cause it's boring as hell, but…" I can almost imagine Selene shouting for him to watch his language. "Since you're here…" He chuckled.

"Huh? Me?" she sounded confused. Yes, you. He wants to laugh at you when you inevitably screw something up. Have you not gotten any judge of his character?

"Yep. Looking forward to see how you blow things up this time." And I'm right on the mark. As per usual.

"Huh…?!" she sounded miserable. The bell rang, and Luca went and sat in the empty seat in front of her, his usual seat, as he normally say next to Selene whenever she got him to come to class.

She made it through the Practical magic, thankfully, without magic. And when Professor Merkulova walked into the classroom the next period, he introduced himself to the new student. She seemed relieved, most likely because it wasn't someone like Professor Schuyler. He began the lesson and had her answer a question, which she thankfully got right. At least she wasn't totally clueless. But we haven't gotten to the practical part, now have we? Today's lesson was to create Rejuvenating Water, a sort of minor Water of Youth. It made things age backwards just a bit, and was fairly simple.

I looked back to see that Yukiya had only made his strong enough to turn the plants we were using back to a sprout, and the Professor went over to ask him about it, "Yukiya, what's wrong? You off all people should be able to turn it back into a seed." It was true. Yukiya's best work happened with plants. He once mentioned that he was the one who had taken care of the garden back home.

"This flower finally got it's roots in the ground. I just can't take that away." He said softly. I couldn't help but smile a bit. If Selene were here, she'd probably be cooing over him for that, calling him a sweet and gentle soul.

"I see…" the professor mused, "So you purposefully suppressed your power?" Yukiya probably nodded, because he didn't say anything. "Well, I can't give you full points for this...but, I do understand how you feel. And I think it's wonderful. I'll give you some bonus points." When the professor came back to the front, he was smiling. I went back to my own work, slightly smiling myself. I was ready to put my own concoction on the flower. I felt like someone was watching me, but ignored it as I dripped the water onto the plant. It immediately took effect, changing back into a seedling, then a sprout. When it became a seed, it floated out of the soil and into my waiting hand. Textbook flawless.

"As talented as ever, Elias." the professor told me, marking down my grade as people started clapping. I did my best to fight back a blush and keep my face straight. It's not that great. I just followed the directions.

A slight chill went down my spine. I had a mildly ominous feeling that something not-so-good was about to happen. My guess would be Luca.

"Why do something so complicated? Let's just cut out the middleman…" I'm right. Again. He probably didn't make the potion and will just use his wand. Show off. "Piece of cake." I was correct.

The professor scolded Luca, telling him that the purpose of the lesson was the potion, not the spell. Luca responded that he did the assignment: turned the plant back to a seed. "That isn't the point," the professor replied, going on to tell him the reasoning behind learning to make the potions for the sake of those who can't use magic, and that we can't just use magic to solve our problems. Selene has lectured him on this very same topic—she doesn't use magic if she doesn't have to. She'll do mundane things without it when she can. Luca, on the other hand, likes to take the easy way out whenever possible. Good-for-naught idiot.

Eventually the lecture ended and the professor moved on. "Hmm? What's wrong Katalina? It looks like you haven't poured the water yet." Oh great. He's to _her_. This is not going to end well.

"Oh, uh, I was just about to do that...yeah…" Boy, she sure sounded confident, didn't she?

"Oh? Well go right ahead." Professor Merkulova encouraged. I slyly looked back to watch what will go wrong.

"A-all right…" She looked extremely nervous. The second the liquid touched the flower, a puff of smoke appeared. That is not supposed to happen. And so, instead of reversing time, the flower started laughing. Loudly. Mocking her attempts. And boy was that laughter _loud_ and high pitched. I saw Yukiya slam his hands over his ears—which were more sensitive than most people's—along with most of the class, including me. Several students started complaining. Oh gosh. How in heck does that even happen? This thing sounded worse than a mandragora, for crying in a bucket!

"Quies!" The professor quickly cast an enchantment and the flower shut professor sighed, "Katalina…"

"I'm sorry…" she sounded completely crestfallen. I glared at her, _as you should be—you've probably wrecked my perfect grade!_ She looked at me and flinched. Serves her right.

The bell rang and Professor Merkulova dismissed the class. He then asked Sommer to stay behind for a minute. If it had been Professor Schuyler, I would've said she was going to get yelled at. Professor Merkulova, on the other hand, rarely held students after class. Sommer really screwed up, it seems. She seemed pretty dang nervous and worried about it, nonetheless.

As I began to make my way to the library, where I was going to spend my lunch, I noticed the students of our class were crowded around the bulletin board outside of Professor Schuyler's classroom. Ah. That's right—yesterday's quiz scores had been posted. I had no doubt that I was in the same place as always: at the very top of…

"No way!" cried one girl, "Elias didn't get first place?!"

I froze mid-step.

"Wonder what happened to him?"

I heard a small, horrified gasp behind me—Sommer. Her name was the very last place.

And mine was just above hers.

I felt my face turn red and had a devastated feeling wash over me. How...how…? I can't believe it...not only did I not end up first, but I wasn't even second or third. I was second to last. I wanted to cry. And hit something. I rushed away from the scene as fast as I could.

"Ah, wait! Elias!" she called after me. I speed up.

I had made it to an empty side hallway when I heard her call out to me again. She had followed me. Why had she followed me?! I stopped.

"U-um! I'm sorry, I'm really sorry!" she cried, "About your grades, and about this morning. I really am just making things worse for you, aren't I?"

"That's right." I said, my voice devoid of all mercy, "You truly are." I didn't even turn to look at her. I didn't want to see her right now. I had never gotten such a low ranking _in my life_.

"Elias…"

I turned around slowly and glared at her, feeling a hot boiling anger in my chest. "Ever since you came here, it's been nothing but trouble for me. Up until now, everything had been perfect. I hadn't ever ranked last in a quiz—I hadn't even mopped up the classroom." I inhaled, "Why? Why are you my buddy?!" This had been the most rotten day I've had in a long time—I get insulted, embarrassed by her moronic magic, and then completely humiliated because of her pathetic quiz results!

She looked like she was about to cry, and whispered, looking at her feet, "I'm sorry, Elias, I...I don't know what to say."

"You don't need to say anything."

She looked up, a bit confused. "Elias?"

"Buddy?" I scoffed, "Hmph. I'll have none of it. If you officially join the academy, as my buddy, I'll just be dragged down by you all the way to graduation." I glared at her, "Who wants that?"

Her eyes widened in surprise, "I...I'm sorry…"

I made an irritated noise, then turned around and stalked off.

I heard her mutter "He's right." as I turned the corner. She's useless.

…. …. ….

Something hit me in the forehead and fell onto my open book. I felt my face twist in confusion as I looked at a chocolate bar, one of the fancy ones my mother liked to send me.

"Thought I'd find you here."

I looked up, and saw Yukiya. How he knew I'd be in the small study room in the deepest recess of the school library, I don't know.

"Do you need something, Yukiya?"

"You're upset. More than you should be." He sat in the chair across from me and looked at me, straight in the eyes. I felt goosebumps rise on my arms at his stare. His face held no emotion, but his eyes...those eyes could stare straight into your soul, leaving no part of it unturned.

"And it matters...why?" I responded evenly.

"It's more than just the test." It wasn't even a question.

"It is." I sighed, knowing he wouldn't leave me alone until I told him, "If this girl is my buddy, every test will be like this. Every grade. And each and every _single_ one of those will only give my father more reason to be disappointed in me. He's always made it clear I'm his least favorite. Percy is a wonder with people, and works in international relations in the Ministry of Magic. Klaus is a genius level wizard who was one of the youngest to earn the rank of Elite Magic Knight—when he was my age! And me? I'm a social wreck who can barely hold a conversation with most people, and no matter how much I study and train, I'll never have Klaus' memory and natural skill. I'm average, and in my father's eyes, I'm already a failure. I can't stand how he looks at me, Yukiya, like I'm useless and will never amount to anything! My only hope was to keep my grades perfect so I down fall below the line—Klaus already has a perfect academic record, and an amazing extra-curricular record to boot! How am I supposed to live up to them? I'm stuck in the shadows, Yukiya, and now my only hope of ever leaving them is gone!"

I fell silent, feeling blood rush to my face as I looked back at my textbook, ashamed. Never, not once, had I spoken those fears aloud. I was pretty sure Klaus knew about them, but I had never verbalized them, those monsters that ate away at me.

"Why do you care what he thinks?" Yukiya said, voice calm, "I know he's your father, but Klaus acts more like one to you."

I look up at him, "What are you talking about?"

"I don't know if either of you realize it, but Klaus pretty much acts like a father to you. And he cares about you greatly, more than I think you realize." Yukiya explained, "And I'm not even the one who originally noticed it. Selene was. So if you don't trust me, trust her. She once told me that she thought you were an amazing person who could do anything you wanted, if you would only figure out _what_ it was you wanted. So, Elias, what is it _you_ want? And if you're so worried about your grades, why don't you tutor her or something? It worked well with Selene and your brother." He stood up, and began walking away. Then he paused. "Oh, and eat the chocolate. It always makes you feel better. I don't want you coming back to the dorm a grump." And then he was gone, leaving me staring at where he'd left in shock. That was probably the longest speech I'd ever heard him say, by far. But _what_ he had said was what baffled me more.

What _do_ I want? What do _I_ want? I've always been trying to become who I thought my father wants me to be. Never had I considered being something else.

And because of that, I didn't even have a clue as to how to change into something else.

* * *

 **Fun Fact 4** : Ah, the Flower Sisters. I loved writing Selene's confrontation with them in Elemental, and her constant teasing of Elias about his "harem." It's actually something Klaus _doesn't_ really tease him about (partially because Selene asked him not to and claimed it as her personal privilege, and partially because he knows what obsessive fangirls are like *cough*Darla*cough*),


	5. Chapter 4

Daisy Pragnya: Yeah, I was pretty proud of Yukiya's speech at the end there. He's the type of character who rarely speaks, so when he does speak up, what he says tends to hold a lot of power and weight behind it.

TheFallenHer0: I agree. The odds are against Katalina. She'll manage to catch up, though. And with Elias, I was trying to convey a sort of academic anxiety disorder with him. He's very attached to his perfect grades, because he has an insecurity that they're the only thing he can be perfect in.

* * *

Chapter 4—A Promise to Elias

I'm still distracted by my conversation with Yukiya from last night. By the time I'd dragged my sorry self back to the dorm, he'd already been in bed, asleep. And, as usual, he was gone before I was even awake.

I was walking down one of the sets of stairs, in a daze, and ran into someone on the flat median where the stairs changed direction.

"Ah…!"

"Hey, are you alright?" I said automatically.

"S-sorry, I-I was just concentrating on something, and, and…" the girl stuttered. I then realized that it was Sommer. Crap. "E-Elias!" she gasped, realizing that it was me.

My eyes widened in surprise, "...It's you." I looked away. I was kind of harsh on her yesterday, but before my head catches up, words slip out of my mouth, "Watch where you're going."

"Sorry…" she mutters. She's not the one who should be saying that—I am. But my pride won't seem to let me.

"Listen, I beg of you. The buddy ordeal is terrible enough, can't you keep your meddling to that alone?" Wait. Why did I say that? What is wrong with me?

"Wha…?" her eyes widened, and she looked hurt, "I've already apologized! What else do you expect me to do?"

I paused, "...You don't have to apologize if you don't want to. Your face is saddening, you know." Better. But not good enough. Why is this so hard? I know what I should say, but whenever I open my mouth it becomes so jumbled!

"Ah…" she looked surprised.

"Do try not to blunder your way through today's class, would you?" And here I was _trying_ to sound encouraging. Bah. Look how well that turned out.

"I-I won't…!" she looked like she was both confused and a bit irritated. I brushed past her and headed towards the first class.

…. …. ….

Classes didn't go so horribly—Sommer _was_ surprised to see the headmaster teaching, but then again a lot of new students were. With most magic schools, the headmaster didn't teach. This particular academy wasn't as big as some of them, though. Take Reseth School of Magecraft—that was by far the biggest magical institute in this world. They weren't so specialized as this academy, though, and was composed of mostly students who used normal magic. We've got a special class for students with unique magical abilities like spellsinging and other odd magics, Vir Ingeniosus.

In History, we learned about the story of the Dragon of Time and the Tower of Sorrow. I, for one, learned that Luca had actually been in the East Forest about a year ago, and had nearly died and had gotten suspended for his efforts. Moron.

The headmaster called on me to answer a question on why people can't just go and see the Dragon of Time.

I stood up, "Because the East Forest has been enchanted, in numerous layers, by the Three Mages to confuse and misdirect all those who set foot in it. There are some who say that the only way to be able to get to through the forest and to the tower are those who are either of Fae blood or Fae gifted, otherwise known as Fae touched, and can hear the magic that guides them. This being because the Fae tend to be guardians and keepers of relics and are generally very untrusting of humans, making it a great way to protect things such as the Tower of Sorrow. Furthermore, it is said that only someone with the blood of the royal family of Gedonelune are able to access the room which contains the Dragon of Time. Currently, that would be the king, his father, and his two sons."

"Good job, Elias, you can be seated. But I think you're neglecting a bit of the royal family." The headmaster replied, "Can anyone complete it?"

"The Vanished Sisters." Luca said seriously, far more seriously than I'd ever heard him. I glanced at him. He looked more serious than I had ever seen him, too.

"That's right, Luca. There used to be two more members of the royal family—the twin sister of the king, and their younger sister. The older sister, the king's twin, was named Aurora Twilight Gedonelune. She completely vanished soon after her engagement to Duke Bertolt, approximately thirty-five years ago. We do know that she died about ten years ago, because the jewel under her portrait of the royal family tree stopped glowing. The younger sister, Princess Aulelia, was said to have kept in contact with her sister, but refused to reveal as to where she had gone, only that she had a family and was happy. But then Princess Aulelia herself retreated from public eye and was not heard from again, about twenty years ago, and within two years of her disappearance, her jewel also lost it's light. King Wilkin, then only Prince Wilkin, was said to have nearly gone mad with grief at losing his two beloved sisters. The kingdom will always miss the princesses. That is why there is a special tribute to them each year in the Memory Festival." The headmaster nodded respectfully, then continued on about the Tower of Sorrow.

I glanced back at Luca again. He seemed distracted, but not in the usual way. He looked a bit upset, as well. Eh, no matter. It has nothing to do with me.

Class ended, and I saw Yukiya talking to Sommer as I began packing up my stuff. I haven't really seen him that talkative with anyone other than Selene or myself. Not that it was any of my business. But then Luca went up and started talking to her, and that was a significantly worse sign. He seemed to be offering to help her with her magic, and I could see the reluctance on her face. At least she's not entirely clueless. He put his hand on her shoulder and it made something in me feel irritated, and then smug when she quickly pushed it away. But she was smiling.

"Thank you so much for the offer, Luca, but I'll be okay!"

"Huh? Why? But it's pretty rough trying to figure it all out yourself, isn't it?" he asked.

"Well, that's probably true, but…" she began.

"And I mean, it's not like your buddy's going to be helping you anytime soon. C'mon." He persisted. Go away, Luca, go _away_.

"I want to do it myself," Sommer insisted, "I want to get as far as I can, alone."

But this just made Luca's smile grow, and he laughed a bit, "I knew it, you are an interesting one!"

"Y-yeah?" she sounded confused at his sudden change of attitude.

He winked at her, "Yeah, I'm getting more interested by the minute."

"I-interested…?" she shook her head, "Anyway, I'll make it work somehow."

"All right." Luca finally said, "But if you want any help, just ask."

Sommer smiled, "Sure thing. Thanks."

…. …. ….

After all the classes were over, a girl from another class—Marelda Kramer—pulled me aside and asked where Luca was. I didn't know, and hadn't seen him since History ended. Yukiya somehow knew, and told the girl to go look in the archives. I wonder why a girl who seemed so serious, and not the type to associate with people like Luca at all, was looking for him. She said she had to apologize for something. I vaguely wonder how that happened.

Forcing those useless thoughts out of mind, I found my way to the usual classroom I used and set up my things. Time to get to work. I prepped everything and got ready to say the incantation. Most of the reference grimoires were written by my father. What I was trying to do was develop a method to help people living in areas of drought.

I pointed my wand, " _Aeveh Phons_!" The water in the pitcher did nothing. I glared at it, then sighed, muttering. "With this, even if the water endlessly flows, it'll just spill out of the jug...however, if I can just cast a spell to prevent the water from flowing out of the jug...alright, but is I try with this, what'll happen to the water that disappeared…?" There were so many factors you had too look at with magical tool creation. If you miss even one detail, it can have disastrous results. " _Aethernitas Pot_!" I removed the original spell and cast it again. " _Aeveh Phons_!" The water in the jug increased. "...No good." I sighed. Why was this so patience-trying? "Even if the water doesn't spill out, this just doesn't look good. Looks like I'll have to go back to the drawing board…" I stopped, "Well, maybe one more try. Third time's a charm, right?" I readied my wand.

I heard a creak, then, "Ah, ah, ah...!" followed by a thumping crash and a really...bizarre cry. I turned around, completely shocked, and saw Sommer, lying on the ground. Had she been spying on me?

She let out an awkward laugh, seeming unsure of what to do.

I decided to tease her a bit, "So...you're into peeping, are you?"

"S-sorry…" She seems to be apologizing in every other sentence to me.

I shook my head, walked over, and held out my hand, "Come on."

She looked at me in complete surprise. I felt a little offended.

"When a girl's fallen down in front of me," I said, "I'll at least lend her a hand. I'm not a monster. I won't bite."

"Th-thanks…" She took my hand and I pulled her up. She's so light...seriously, does she eat enough? She's even lighter than Selene, and at least Selene has reasons for her lack of weight.

"So," I began cooly, "would you like to tell me why you were spying on me?"

"W-well, it's not that I wanted to spy on you, I just, ah, wanted to talk to you about something…"

"That something being?"

"Um, about yesterday, really, I'm sorry." she looked down, looking completely and honestly contrite

"Oh, the insults? Well, I'm over those…" Not really, until just now. They did sting. But seeing how she's genuinely sorry about them, I'll forgive her.

"Well, it's not just that! Your grades, too." She took a breath, and then declared, "I'll do my best! My absolute best, so that you'll acknowledge me as your buddy!"

"Huh." I said. I honestly hadn't been expecting that. "You're pretty strange, you know that?"

"Am, am I…?" Don't look like that. It's a compliment, as Selene always says...but she wouldn't know that, would she…?

"Even though I said those terrible things to you yesterday, you're still rather...positive." I was honestly surprised about it.

"Well, it's like you said...what you were saying, it wasn't wrong."

"So, you were aware?" and there's the snottiness that keeps slipping out.

"Yeah." she became momentarily crestfallen.

Then I thought of something, "At the end of class today, Luca said he'd teach you magic, didn't he?"

"You heard that?"

"I just happened to hear it." I said nonchalantly, "Why'd you refuse? He may not look, or act, like it, but Luca's a more talented wizard than me."

"Elias…" she said, "I was grateful for his offer, don't get me wrong, but I want to do as much as I can by myself."

I withheld a smile, "Heh. You've got guts for an amateur."

"Well, I've been through a lot." She said, like it was no big deal. But I saw something flash in her eyes, something sad, even though she was still smiling. That glimpse I managed to see made something in my chest twist. She continued, "Up until now, all I did was blame myself because I'm new and inexperienced, but that's wrong. I now think that if I work at it, even I can get better. So, I'm going to work hard and join this academy! I'm going to wipe away the word 'provisional' from my name!" She said confidently, looking me right in the eyes, "If I do...Elias, will you acknowledge me? As your buddy?"

And now we're back to that. "And why are you so fixated on me?" Seriously, I wanted to know.

"Well, I, I really like your magic." She admitted.

I blinked, taken aback, "Huh?"

"Every movement has meaning. It's beautiful." she continued, "I really look up to it! I would love to be able to use magic like that one day."

I honestly couldn't believe what she was saying, and that my face wasn't as red as a tomato. I was constantly getting criticized for it being so by the book. Mostly by Klaus, but Selene was always encouraging me to forget the text and have fun with it. But never had someone so earnestly said that they liked my magic. "I thought you admired Serge Durandal?"

She shrugged, palms up, "Well, yeah, Serge Durandal's the mage I look up to, that's true, but it's not like I've actually seen his magic. I've seen yours up close, and the first time I saw it, I thought straight from the bottom of my heart: 'I like this.' And I do."

"Rather simple and foolish, you are." And there I go again, covering up embarrassment with curt words.

"Huh?" she is really easy to confuse, isn't she? But it's kind of nice to know someone who doesn't quite roll with the punches and is rarely confused. Selene confuses other people, but is rarely confused herself. Sometimes I wonder if she's not-quite human…

"Sorry, but I don't think I need a buddy." More like you don't deserve to have someone like me as a buddy. "Not you, not anyone. I can do it all myself. I don't need anyone's help, and I don't intend to ask for any." She'd honestly be better with someone else as her buddy, someone who's not so harsh as I am. "I've come this far without anyone's assistance, and I'll be fine without any." Selene doesn't count. She does what she wants whether people ask her to or tell her not to. Exception to every rule. "Therefore, I don't need a buddy. Come to think of it, being alone is far more preferable." Preferable for you. I'll only hurt your feelings. Again.

"B-but…" she protested.

"That's just how I am."

"W-wait! What about…what about..." she was clearly grasping at straws, then seemed to get an idea, "What about the Persona Mirror?"

That startled me. It was random. Completely, entirely, utterly random. " _What_ about the Persona Mirror?"

"Well, Luca told me...if...if I…" she took a breath, "If I took the Persona Mirror out of the headmaster's office, you'd acknowledge me."

My eyes widened, "What in the...there's no way you can do it." Or should. Don't listen to Luca. Rule of Thumb. Common Sense.

This seemed to only encourage her, "Yes I can!"

"You're very bold." I wasn't too sure how else to respond.

"I believe I can!" she repeated.

It takes a little more than determination to pull something like that off, "Just because you believe you can do it, you think you can break the seal on the mirror?"

"Yes I do!"

"Do you even realize how ridiculous you sound?" I sighed, "Well, for the record, I don't think it can be done." You're just likely to get in trouble for trying.

She looked me dead in the eye, her face showing nothing but determination, "If I manage to take it out, will you acknowledge me?"

"If you can manage it." But I had every doubt that it'll ever come to be. I don't even think Luca could get past all the barriers. But if it gets her to stay away, all the better. "Well, there's no way you can, so..." It's not like she's Selene, who'd only be encouraged by someone saying she can't. I turned around and gathered up my stuff, leaving the room.

I just hope she doesn't do anything stupid. It's not like she's brave enough to sneak out of the dorms.

* * *

 **Fun Fact 5** : Yeah, there was foreshadowing in this chapter with the Vanished Princess' and all, as well as with Luca's interest in them. Those are actually going to come into play after Taming, and back in Elemental. They'll take place over the last bit of Midwinter Break at the academy.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5—The Persona Mirror

I was a little later getting to class than normal—I went to the headmaster's office first thing. I had gotten a magic note last summoning me to his office this morning. Apparently he wasn't sure when exactly Klaus and Selene would be returning. He told me what he knew, though, seeing as I was Klaus' brother, Selene's friend, and temporary prefect. Yesterday, in fact, he had gotten a note from Klaus that was dated from earlier this week—apparently there were undefined reasons and Klaus wasn't sure when he and Selene would be coming back. Something had happened, and he was taking initiative to fix it. He asked for the two of them to be excused and for it to be kept a secret.

I was in the front hall when I saw her first that morning, and she was yawning. She looked like a puppy when she yawned, her tongue curling and eyes closing. It was kind of cute...wait. What am I thinking?! "Ladies cover their mouths when they yawn, you know." _Aaand_ there I go. Again.

She jumped and jerked her head to look at me, "Elias!"

"Good morning." I said. There. I managed to say something somewhat pleasant.

"G-good morning…" she stutters a lot, doesn't she?

She looks exhausted, and I speculate whether or not she did sneak out last night. "Didn't get enough sleep?"

"Yeah…" she sighed, "I kind of ended up getting lectured by Professor Schuyler for a few hours…"

"By Professor Schuyler? What did you do this time?" I have a dreadful feeling about this, "It's not something that'll reflect poorly on me, right?"

"N-no, it won't! I just, you know," she shuffled her feet awkwardly, "got caught on the way to grabbing the Persona Mirror…"

She didn't.

"What?! You're kidding…" Please tell me you're kidding! "You _actually_ tried to get it?"

"Yeah…" she sighed.

I was aghast. "...I'm in shock. You really _are_ an idiot."

"Yeah, I guess I am." She was depressed now. Great. At least she realizes what she did was dumb.

"And aware of it, I see."

She looked up, face pouting, again looking a bit like a puppy, "But hey, can't you at least acknowledge my courage?"

I did my best not to roll my eyes, "Well, you're brave and not much else. I'll give you that." And now I'm wondering if anything else besides getting caught happened, "So what about the mirror?"

"Well, I got caught before I could get into the headmaster's office." she admitted. Oh thank the sun.

"Well, yeah, of course." I replied, "What did you expect?"

"But I did manage to get away with it by saying I forgot something in the classroom."

I sighed. "You really are just all guts, aren't you?"

She smiled at me, "Aww, thank you!" Maybe she's a bit more like Selene than I thought. That was totally how Selene would've responded.

"That wasn't a compliment."

She pouted. Selene would've shrugged, grinned, and said something along the lines of, "So? I took it as one!" Again, subconscious trains of thought, this isn't Selene.

"Oh, Fair Elias! Good morning." Oh sun…please no.

The sun apparently didn't care, because the three sisters just pushed Katalina away and crowded around me.

"Ahh, as dashing as ever!" Dashing? Does an airhead like you even know the meaning of that word?

"What a blessing, meeting our Fair Elias this early!" Blessing, or curse? I'm heavily leaning towards the latter.

"It's too early to be this loud." I practically groan, resisting the urge to mimic my brother and pinch the bridge of my nose. I get compared to him often enough as it is. "Could you quiet down?" At least Katalina's not as annoying as these three.

"O-oh, please, forgive us." the oldest one sighs.

"Aw…" another pouts.

"Fair Elias…" the last one whines.

"Hey, Elias!" I think that's Katalina. "That's no way to talk to girls!" These sisters aren't girls. They're pains in the butt! I can feel the metaphorical irk mark on my face. As if I weren't annoyed enough as it is?

"Ahh...how wonderful! That expression of suppressed rage!" The girls each put there hands to their foreheads and visibly swoon. Seriously, how does Katalina not see that no matter what I do, they won't leave me alone? Maybe I should get a girlfriend to dissuade them, like Selene suggests all the time. Scratch that—there's the problem of them probably hazing and/or murdering any girl that dared date me who wasn't "worthy" in their eyes. Meaning most every girl in existence.

"Ooh, our Fair Elias' rage…" I spotted Katalina over the sisters, and she looked completely baffled. Ha. I almost want to say "I told you so" but what I said that would warrant that was, sadly, only said in my head.

"Could this morning get any better? Oh, please, insult us more!" Exactly my point. At least Luca's not here. And before you try and prove me wrong, Universe, just don't. Please. I sigh, brush past the sisters, and make my way to class. I heard the sisters making their strange comments as I left.

"Ahh, he left."

"The view from his back is wonderful too…" Oh gross. I felt a shiver go down my spine. "See you later, Fair Elias!"

Oh. I left Katalina back there. I hope the sisters don't bother her. I wouldn't wish that even on Luca, my worst enemy.

Wait, when did I start referring to her as Katalina, even in my head?

Sun help me.

…. …. ….

I found Yukiya in his seat when I got to our first class. I set my stuff at my desk then slid into Selene's seat, "Yukiya." I whispered. The headmaster told me not to tell anyone, but I have to tell Yukiya. He wouldn't tell anyone, anyway. He barely speaks to begin with.

"Huh?" He looked at me, face blank. "Did you apologize yet?"

Oops. I'd forgotten about that. "Uh...kind of, maybe, a bit…"

He turned back to the window, intent on ignoring me. I sighed again, for what seemed the tenth time this morning.

"But I do have some news on Selene and my brother." I said softly. That got his immediate attention. "I asked the headmaster this morning, and he showed me a note he'd gotten from my brother. Apparently, the leave of absence is going to be extended for an undetermined amount of time."

"Why?"

"We don't know. The note was kind of vague on the reasons, Klaus just said it was an emergency, and that he was working on taking care of it. That was it. Oh, and it was confirmed that the original reason Selene left was because her brother and his family was in an accident. It was the oldest one, Johnathan, the one we met at the party all those months ago. He was killed, his wife is currently in a coma, and of their two children, one has a broken leg and the younger one was just a bit battered."

Yukiya's eyes widened, "No wonder she left. Johnathan was pretty much her father."

I nodded, "I just hope she'll be okay." The new information had just made my worry become a different kind.

He nodded in agreement, "Let me know is you learn anything else, please." He looked back at the window. Most people would think that he was no less apathetic than usual, but I could see the small crease of worry between his eyebrows.

I got out of Selene's seat and went to my own as the sisters walked in. Please don't bother me. Please. Not now. Not now.

…. …. ….

Practical Magic was outside today. It was an Umbra Attack day. We've only had two since the school year started—one during Selene's trial, and then another about a month and a half ago. Selene had surpassed the all-school record at that point, as well as her own—132 in an _hour_. All with fire magic. Let's just say she got a lot of extra credit.

The professor asked what the four elements were, and called on Kata—Sommer. She is _Sommer_. Anyway, he called on her and she got it right, meaning we didn't get a demerit for it, thankfully. It honestly wasn't a hard question, though. Even young children should know the answer. The restrictions, as per usual, were only attacking spells from the four elements were allowed.

As usual, I challenged Luca to a match. And, as usual, he didn't take it seriously.`

"Luca."

"Yeah?"

"Let's have a serious match to see who can beat the most Umbra. Seeing as Selene's not here to defeat them all."

He rolled his eyes, "Seriously? Well, sure, whatever." Was it just me or did he see more distracted than normal?

"I won't lose." I said confidently.

The professor called to start. I first used a fire spell Selene had taught me. Her spells were always easy to use. She was really good at revamping old fire spells to make them more effective and/or easier. I noticed Luca was playing around with the Umbras—again—using water spells.

Eventually the umbras disappeared. "With that, let's see the results of today's lesson." He called the spell which revealed the scores in the form of glowing, floating numbers. Mine was 50, so not a bad amount for me. But then I saw Luca's. 30.

You'd think I'd be happy, but I was just mad. He didn't take it seriously. _Again_. I hated that he didn't care enough to actually try. And that infuriated me. I marched up to him, glaring, "Why?"

"Hmm?" he looked up—or down, rather, since he just _had_ to be taller than me—and smirked slightly, "No need to look so scary, man. You won, didn't you? Congrats."

"There's no _way_ you were serious. Why can't you compete like you mean it?" I demanded.

He chuckled, "There's a surprise if I ever heard one. I _was_ serious, you know? And I mean, you won. Why're you getting so mad?"

"Because you won't actually compete with me." I was trying my utmost not to yell at him. What is wrong with him?!

"Is that so?" he said, acting like he hadn't realized it, "If you were up against Yukiya, I wonder if you'd get this pissed? You know, I was thinking this from before, but...Elias, aren't you, like, _too_ fixated on me?"

"What!" He was going to say something stupid, wasn't he? Why am I so fixated on you? Because you waste a gift that I'd give just about anything to have!

"What to say, what to say…?" he mused, "A guy likes me...well, unfortunately, I'm into girls, you see."

"What are you even saying?! Nonsense!" I snapped.

He smirked, "I see your sense of humor is as great as ever. Selene would've been rolling on the ground laughing. But seriously, I can't help but think you're a little obsessed with me. Are you, Prince Elias?"

I felt more anger than I wanted slip into my visible face. I opened my mouth to yell at him to stop calling me that, but...

"That's enough, you two! Quiet down!" Professor Schuyler snapped.

"Aww, looks like we ticked off the professor." Luca said, sounding not at all remorseful, "Tch, whatever…" He then walked away. I clenched and unclenched my fists, trying to calm myself down.

"Luca Orlem!" The professor then yelled at him to return to class, to which Luca made a vague excuse of not feeling well and going to take a break.

"Luca! Elias!" And there's Katalina. She came up to me, looking a little unsure, "Are you okay?"

I turned to her, emotions perfectly controlled once again. "Why would I not be?"

"Well, just now, that fight…"

I sighed, "Look, it's not something you should worry about. Luca...has incredible talent. And everyone knows it. But I can never understand why he just squanders it like he does. I don't understand."

"He probably has his reasons." She replied.

"Enough. Leave me be." I said wearily, waving her away. Before going to gather my stuff up and leave.

"Elias…"

…. …. ….

I headed to the room where I normally did experiments. We used it today for our last class, so I had left for a while to let everyone filter out. Instead, I found those Idiotic Sisters ganging up on Katalina. Again.

"All right, if you're only going to keep dragging our Fair Elias down, then just leave the academy!" one demanded.

"That'll solve everything!" another agreed.

Oh my. This was a little more severe than times previous, wasn't it?

"That has nothing to do with you three." I wish they'd just take a hint, thick-skulled morons.

"Elias!" Katalina sounded surprised.

"Elias?!" Echoed a sister.

"Sounds like you're talking quite a bit about me when I'm not around." I continued cooly. Nevermind that the sisters probably talk about me all the time...yuck. Don't think of that sort of thing Elias. Creepy girls.

"U-um! Big Sis Lily, what should we do?!" Violet whispered.

"D-don't ask me! Rose, you're the oldest! Do something!" cried Lily.

"Huh?! M-me?!" The three kept on trying to pass responsibility to the other two. It's revolting how they do that.

"Now, the results of that test were certainly terrible." I began, "But do you girls really think I'm one to get dragged down to the bottom by some incompetent Buddy? Don't sell me so short, would you?"

"Of course not! We wouldn't dream of it!" Uh-huh. Then what was this I walked in on?

"We were just thinking of you…" Of course you were. You never think of anything of actual importance.

"And just wanted to help any way we could…" If I wanted help, I'd ask for it.

"I don't need help from the likes of you three."

They then got excited. Crap. Dang crap crap. You three are creepy.

"Woah! Elias!"

"Oohh, his words are as cold as ever!"

"The way he looks like us as if we're cockroaches...wonderful!" Cockroaches rank above you in my books.

"I think I'm going to faint!"

I rolled my eyes. Please do. It'll be one less annoying voice that way. "Still have business with her?"

"N-no, none at all! Please, excuse us!"

"G-goodbye…"

"We'll be going now…"

The three shuffled out of the classroom. Good riddance.

I sighed, "Some people, I tell you." I looked at her, "If you've got time to play around with that kind of crowd, at least learn a magic formula, or something."

She looked mildly offended, "I wasn't playing around, I…"

But I was leaving the room. I was going to take my experiments to another classroom. I didn't have time for frivolous conversation, particularly with her.

* * *

 **Fun Fact 6** : Again, the Sisters. I always wondered what Elias' would think when faced with them. Authoress had fun writing his thoughts on the sisters, and yes, she's switched to speaking in the third person. She does that in real life sometimes (mostly unconsciously, and doesn't even realize it until her irritated friends point it out—needless to say, they find it annoying when she does that, particularly since they think she's lying about not realizing it most of the time. She did it on purpose this time, though).


	7. Chapter 6

As you guys may or may not have noticed, this story now has an actual cover image! The awesome picture was created by a good friend of mine, Daisy Pragnya! Thanks again Daisy!

Daisy Pragnya/TheFallenHer0: You guys pretty much commented on the same things, so I'll answer them together. Don't worry. We'll get a lot more about the Vanished Princesses in Warrior. And the cockroaches line...yeah, I like showing Eli's inner snark when it comes to the Flower Fanclub. And this is specifically to Daisy: Yeah, I support Lulias as the ultimate bromance (not as a romance, though). XD They seriously balance each other out, even if it is violently at times.

* * *

Chapter 6—True Feelings

The next morning was Saturday, and so I was currently sitting at one of the corner tables in the dormitory cafeteria. I was looking through my notes while eating some sort of quiche thing. Only male students were allowed in this cafeteria during breakfast. Lunch could be at either, but dinner was also confined to your dorm unless it was a holiday or event or something. On weekends, though, upperclassmen could go into town. Selene did it a couple times every month for various reasons. Klaus, on the other hand, rarely seemed to leave the school.

I felt a tap on my shoulder, and turned my head to see Yukiya. "Katalina is waiting for you outside the dorm." he said.

"Why?" I asked.

He shrugged, "She seemed anxious."

"Oh sun. Please tell me she's not in trouble…" I sigh as I put my stuff back in my bag and stand up, shoving the last of the quiche in my mouth.

As I exit the dorm, I see Luca talking to her. Then he pauses, "Well, I'll be on my way before Prince Elias comes out. I don't want to see his unpleasant face on my day off." Rude.

He said goodbye to her and left.

I approached her, "What do you want this early in the morning?"

"Elias! Good morning!" She was chipper. And now that I actually look at her, she was in this pretty pink dress that actually suited her really well. She actually looked her age, and her hair was pulled back with a pink ribbon acting as a headband, and I had to notice that she actually looked nice with her hair down like tha...oh great. Shut up brain, shut up. When I didn't respond, she grew nervous, "Umm, is something wrong?"

"It's nothing."Oh, now I'm stuttering. Great. "Just...something about you seems different today."

She bit her lip, "My roommate lent me a ribbon. D-does it look weird?"

"I...didn't say that. It's just," I scrambled mentally for words. "I always see you in your uniform, so this is kind of new. It's not, uh, bad."

She smiled, "Ah, thank you."

I mentally shook my head, "You said you needed my for something?"

"Oh, right! I need to talk to you." She replied.

"Is it something important?" It better be.

She nodded earnestly. "Yes, very much so."

"All right then. Let's go." We both headed to a courtyard—incidentally, this is where Klaus and Selene practiced. At this point in the game, he wasn't really tutoring her much anymore, because she had caught up nicely. But they practiced together. Seriously, the only thing keeping Klaus from asking Selene out was his own head. Whatever the two of them are doing over in Terra, I hope it ends with them being together because, honestly, the tension between the two of them is crazy.

"Such nice weather." Katalina commented.

"Yeah." I agreed. It _was_ a gorgeous day. Sunny, bright, light breeze. This, as Selene would say, is an ideal day.

"It feels sort of nice when there's no one here."

"Yeah." I repeated, still thinking of my brother and friend.

"Elias, what do you usually do on your day off?" she asked.

"Yeah…"

"Geez! Is that the only thing you're going to say? Yeah?" Katalina whined.

I snapped out of my daze. "Let me tell you this. Having you drag me out on my free morning is going to mess up my plans." To study. "So, straight to the point. Why did you go this far to have a talk with me."

She became nervous again, "Yeah, well. Let's sit down first."

I plopped down right where I was. I wanted to get this over with. She sat down a little more carefully and opened her shoulder bag, "A wanted to show you this." She then pulls out the Persona Mirror, wrapped in a cloth.

I'm astounded. "Wha—is that?!"

She nodded, "Yes, this is the Persona Mirror."

"Impossible!" I gasped, "Just how did you get that? The door to the headmaster's office is locked with strong magic spells. On top of that, the treasure chest that kept this mirror was supposed to be protected by a complex seal!" Klaus had made that seal—and seals were some of his best works. When he found out...I shuddered slightly, not wanting to think about it.

"Well I opened the door, and opening the treasure chest was easy, too." she shrugged a little bit.

"That just can't be!" I exclaimed.

"I don't understand it myself, but it's true!" she insisted, "A mysterious woman appeared and gave me this mirror."

"A mysterious woman?" There weren't, currently, any female professors. There was the school healer, but she lived in town, and the only other female staff member was on maternity leave on the moment.

"My roommate said she's the ghost of the headmaster's office." she told me.

"The ghost of the headmaster's office. I've heard about that." But I put no stock in rumors. I mean, none of the ones about Yukiya being cursed and whatever else were even close to being true. Besides, Selene a good point when she said things get twisted from one mouth to the next to the point where they're no longer recognisable.

"Still," she said, sounding contemplative, "I didn't think that she was a ghost, though."

"So, then what is it?" I pressed.

She shrugged, palms up, "Honestly? I have no idea."

I rolled my eyes, "Then maybe it _was_ a ghost."

She started, "D-don't say that! It creeps me out!"

"Seriously?" I deadpanned.

"I hate scary things." She declared.

"Hmm. Is that so." I didn't care about that so much as: "Then is that the real thing, the mirror?"

"Yeah, it should be." she replied.

I was still a bit doubtful—it couldn't be _that_ easy to get ahold of. "I'll know when I look into it." I never did have the chance to look in it, despite it having been made by my father.

"Wait a moment. They say it reflects your true self." she said in an are-you-sure sort of voice.

"True self…" I muttered. Did I really want to look?

"Do you really want to take a look?" She unknowingly echoed my thoughts.

"I…" I wasn't sure now. She slipped off the cloth and held it out to me, face-down. It was just slightly bigger than her hand.

"I'll leave that choice up to you."

I just stared at the mirror she was offering to me. I took a deep breath, steeled myself, and took it from her. I turned it face up, looking at my reflection. The glass emitted a weak light, and my mirror image no longer followed my moments, but moved on its own, and begun to speak.

" _I'm scared...so worried...what should I do? Will I live in fear of what people think of me forever? Anxious and scared, the pressure is always about to crush me. Not to mention that I don't know where the heck Selene and Klaus are, or if they're okay. In order not to shame the name of Goldstein, in order not to disappoint my brother, I'll have to act brave and confident and keep up appearances. Klaus didn't want people knowing that things in Terra took a foul turn, but I hate keeping to myself...I mean, look at Luca. He's an amazing wizard, and he'd probably handle all this a lot better than I am. He's much more talented and powerful than I am. I envy him—he'd probably be able to help Klaus were he in my place. But I don't want to lose to him._ "

I suddenly found my voice, emitting a weak, "No…" I frowned and turned it over, setting it as far away from me as I could, my heart racing.

"Elias." Don't pity me. I'm not weak. I don't want pity, not yours, not anyone.

"No!" I cried, "That's not me! I'm not that weak! This is wrong! This…" It can't be me! It can't! I'm not that pathetic!

"No, this is actually you, Elias." Katalina said gently.

"I'm telling you! It's not!" I shouted, glaring at her, mentally telling her to drop it.

But she didn't cringe away, or flinch. She stared me boldly in the eyes and said, "This is you, Elias."

"Stop that!" I yelled at her, feeling panic rise inside me. It's not me! It's not! I slammed my hands over my ears and turned away from her. I didn't want to hear it!

I heard her speak, but with my hands over my ears it sounded like a whisper, "This is a mirror that shows your true self. Exactly as you are.

"Please! Stop!" I cried. But she scooted over in front of me and pulled my hands away from my ears, speaking softly as she held them.

"Please, Elias. Would you listen to me for a little?" I didn't say anything, so she continued, "It's not only you, Elias. It's the same for everyone. I don't think it's possible for anyone to act as happy as they would on a good day every single day. Everyone feels anxious or scared, pressured, sad or hurt. Being jealous, getting irritated when something isn't working, hating yourself for it. Everyone struggles because they want to be perfect. Even me. In fact, I'm glad to have seen the real you—even if you've just got a few more burdens than normal at the moment. I thought you were some kind of revered person. But you're just as human as everyone else. You're continuously worrying and suffering, but always moving forward and trying to grow stronger in spite of that, right?"

I tried not to choke, and looked away from her gaze, "Don't lump me in with you."

She pouted, "Maybe you're right, but even so! You know, we're both only students. It's so normal that we're worried about ourselves and those we care about. I find it admirable that you care about your friend and brother so much."

"Normal…" I repeated.

"Yeah, completely normal." she confirmed. When I didn't respond, her brow furrowed, "Elias?"

"So it's normal, huh? You really are an idiot." And there's the sharp words that always seem to slip out.

She slumped, "I'm sorry. I've said too much."

"Well, it's fine. I don't mind." Seeing as she did nothing but speak her mind and what she honestly believed to be true. "Thank you." I muttered. She looked entirely confused, but I ignored that. "I have to say, my father made quite an unnecessary thing. Thanks to him, I ended up seeing a side of myself I didn't want to see."

"Maybe I should take a look, too." she suggested, picking up the mirror.

"Don't do it." I warned, "Nothing good will come from it." Seeing as I nearly had a panic attack.

"You think so? But I'm curious."

Curiosity killed the cat. At least Selene's not hear to nag me and say, "But satisfaction brought it back!"

The mirror started speaking in her voice, "A _ah! I want to graduate from this 'provisional' thing! I want to become a real student at this academy! And while Elias is moody, I love his magic! It's beautiful and amazing! I'm going to do my best to make him acknowledge me. Oohh...now I think of it, I haven't had lunch yet, I'm so hungry!_ " (A/N Ironically, I was eating lunch at the time I wrote this bit!) " _I didn't get any sleep last night, well, maybe I should take a nap. But I'm hungry…_ "

What the…" Her cheeks were pink. It was funny, really, it was.

"Huh." I looked down, my shoulders shaking from the effort of my trying not to laugh. I failed, and burst out laughing. "You're...haha...just like your true self!" I couldn't help it—it was too funny!

She looked a little dumbfounded, but smiled anyway.

I was still laughing, and it felt wonderful, "You always do exceed my expectations. Seriously, I've never known a girl like you. I've always feel uncomfortable being with girls. They're really noisy, they like to pry their way into people's private lives." I wasn't sure where I was going with this, but I guess I'll just let my mouth do the talking. "Pedigree, looks, grades. They only care about those aspects of mine. But you're completely different. You called me stubborn, cold hearted, and even twisted. You're the first girl to ever talk to me like that. It seems to make you different from other girls."

"Oh? And what does that mean? Is that a compliment? And what about this Selene girl people keep talking about? Isn't she your friend?" She asks so many questions, doesn't she?

"Yeah, this time it's a compliment. And trust me when I say Selene is a special case no matter what she does. She is the special case among special cases." My voice was completely serious with those last two sentences.

"O-okay then, thank you." she said, turning red. Ha. And people say _I_ blush easily. "Oh, right! About the subject of buddies…"

"I know, I promised you, so I'll accept you as my buddy—for now." _Even though I never expected you to actually do it, you did._ She's something, all right.

"R-really?!" she gasped, looking overjoyed. In her excitement, she leaned really close to me. As in, our faces were only about two inches apart. All of a sudden her eyes widened and she blushed violently, and I did about the same thing at the same time. I averted my eyes.

"Y-you're too close…" I mumbled.

She jerked back, "S-sorry." Way to make things awkward.

I took a breath, calmed down, and then cleared my throat. "However, as my buddy, you'll need to be officially admitted. As long as you're my buddy, I won't allow any unruly behavior, as it affects my status." And I think I was going to take Yukiya's suggestion from Chapter 3—er, Wednesday. "From now on, I'll drill you with magic every day after class."

"Yes! Sure, sure!" Someone was eager. I wonder how's she react when she found that it was in no way fun. At least I wasn't Klaus who'd take pleasure in the pain it causes her.

"One answer is enough…"

She beamed at me, "But I'm so glad!"

I shook my head, faintly smiling, "You're just so honest and simple-minded." She wouldn't trick the class into thinking she'd failed her trial when she hadn't, like a certain _someone_ we all know.

"What? How could you? I'm not that simple minded!" she protested.

"The Persona Mirror has shown you just as you are, you know." I quoted her words back to her, and it made her face get all scrunched up and indignant—it was kind of cute, to be honest.

"Well, maybe! I'll try it again!" She picked it up and looked into it's surface: " _That Elias! He's mean, but he's not a bad person, I guess._ " She promptly turned red, and met my eyes, making a bit of heat rise in my face. "S-sorry…" she stuttered.

"M-mean?" I say, "What's that about?"

"I-I'm sorry…"

The Persona Mirror suddenly started to glow. "W-woah!" she gasped.

"That's…" actually, I didn't know why it was happening. But then a ball of light floated out, and with a pop, it revealed a fluffy pink creature.

"Squeeee!" it cried. Was that a carbuncle? It was, but they're normally white...

Katalina was completely confused, "H-huh? What's this?" She yelped when it flew at her and clung to her face, "Squee"ing. "H-hey! I can't breath!" She pulled it off her face, but it just clung to her hand. "What is this thing?"

"A carbuncle, I guess." I replied.

"Carbuncle?"

"Yeah." I confirmed, "They're exceptionally rare creatures, but this one has an odd color. Carbuncles are usually white, you see. I've never seen one like this, even in a magical creature encyclopedia."

"Is that so?" she sounded thoughtful. The thing squee'd at her, and I practically saw hearts appear in her eyes, "Oh my…soooo adorable!" And then she rubbed it against her cheek, and it made happy sounds.

"It seems really attached to you." I commented.

"True. I'll try to talk to it." That's right—she had the ability to talk to animals. I'd forgotten about that. She addressed the creature, "Hello? Where did you come from?" It squee'd and her brows furrowed a bit, "Oh? That's strange. Where did you come from?" The same reply. I don't know if she understood it. "Huh? I can't talk to it?" Seems like my guess was right.

"Talking to animals was your special magical ability, right? It doesn't seem to be very reliable." I said.

"That's not true! This is the first time it's not worked! This magic has never failed like this!" she defended.

"I see. For you, it's the only magical ability that worked decently." How nice, to have a natural talent...

"Yes! I have confidence that I won't lost to anyone when it concerns animals." she said proudly.

"You should cherish that." I sighed.

"Huh?"

"The professor said, too, to expand what you're good at."

"Y-yes. Thanks."

"But in that case," I continued, "there might be another reason why you can't talk to the carbuncle. So I guess trying again is no use."

"I guess so too." she agreed.

"So what will you do with it?" I asked. And she looked like she had no clue, and it didn't seem like it was going to let go of her anytime soon.

She looked at it apologetically, "I'm sorry. I can't really take you back with me." But it just clung tighter to her hand. "H-hey! Let go!" It squees and she seems unable to pull it off. She eventually just gives up, and sighs, "No good. It won't let go."

"Then it seems you have no choice other than to just bring it along."

She tilts her head as she looks at me, "Well, are animals allowed in the dorm?"

"Yukiya has one." And so do several other students. Particular those studying to be tamers. I'm surprised she hasn't noticed that.

"Oh, you mean that wolf…"

"And since that thing won't let go, you can only really take it with you."

"That's true." she conceded, then looked at the pink fluff ball on her hand, "Okay, you'll come with me." It made a happy noise, then climbed up onto her shoulder. The hearts returned to her eyes. Geeze, what is it with girls and cute things? "Still, it's adorable! So, so cute!"

"You really like animals, don't you?" I stated the obvious.

"Yeah! I love them!"

I smiled slightly, "You're a bit like one yourself." Wait. Why did I say that? It certainly wasn't because she was cute or anything...

"And what's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing." I stood up and brushed myself off, "Well, see you Monday." I began headed back to the dorm.

"See you Monday!" She called.

And I couldn't help but wonder—was it possible that I was falling for her?

* * *

 **Fun Fact 7** : If y'all haven't noticed by now, Elias uses a lot of Selene-isms and sayings and whatnot, and he thinks about her a good deal too. Let me explain. He really looks up to her, just like (if not more than) Klaus at this point. Selene, being Selene, has become a big part of his life by now. That's also how I deviate from the original route—keeping Selene and everything involving her in mind.


	8. Chapter 7

Daisy Pragnya: You left two reviews on the same chapter. I didn't even know that you could do that. XD I'm so happy you're liking Katalina with Elias. I am, however, a little confused by the "Katalina Night Adventure" question. Katalina is, out of all of my OCs, the most similar to the original MC from the actual game. And yes, Professor Merkulova will be involved, just like in the game...only, Luca won't be. I won't say anything more, because those are secrets that will be revealed in later chapters.

TheFallenHer0: I'm glad you like Katalina. She is a sweetheart, and she turns Elias from a stiff, stuffy scholar to a lovesick boy. It makes me giggle.

PetVet1023: Thanks! I'm happy that you're enjoying them. And I would post more for Philyra's story if it weren't for the fact that every chapter pretty much directly corresponds with a chapter of Elemental, meaning I need to post them at the same time. And happy belated 15th birthday!

* * *

Note: When words are like (this) they're the translation of piglet-speak. ;)

* * *

Chapter 7—First Kiss?

The rest of the weekend was peaceful. I told Yukiya what had happened (although I left out my suspicions that I may or may not be starting to crush on Katalina, though, knowing him and his freaky discernment abilities, he might have already guessed) so I think the two of us are on better terms now—that tension between the two of us was gone, so, if anything, that's a good thing.

I got in a lot of studying on Sunday, and did all the prefect duties for the next week. As it turned out, prefects don't have tons to do unless there's an event or something going on at the school. Klaus, who was always bogged down with work, was merely overachieving— _again_ —and doing far more than he needed to. But then again, a lot of it was stuff he'd have to do next year as a professor—he'd actually gotten the job. I didn't know this until the headmaster had told me it when I met with him Sunday morning. I knew he wanted to be one, but I wonder why he didn't tell me. And how did he actually manage to get the position? I'll have to ask him when he gets back.

Because he will be back. He said he would, so he will. Klaus keeps his promises.

…. …. ….

When I saw Katalina on Monday, the first thing I saw was the carbuncle running around on the top of her head, mussing her hair and making noises. It clearly tickled, because she was giggling. She noticed me as I approached, "Oh, good morning, Elias."

"Good morning." I glanced at the pink thing, "It didn't leave, I see."

"Nope. I ended up just getting permission to have it in the dorms and my classes." she explained.

"I see. You thought of making it your familiar, then?" I reached out to pet it, and it snuggled up to my hand, making happy noises. Even I'd admit—though not out loud—that it was kind of cute. I couldn't not smile.

"Do you have a familiar?" she asked me.

"Technically, yes."

"And that's supposed to mean…"

"She's registered as my familiar, but it's more of a pet. I don't use her as a familiar." I explained.

"What is it?"

"Yukiya brought a little white kitten back to our room last winter, and since he couldn't have more than one familiar, I registered it as mine so we didn't have to leave it out in the cold. Her name's Snow. She mostly stays in our dorm room, or wanders around campus on the days we leave the window open. Yukiya and I rotate taking care of her, though she's pretty low maintenance."

"Aw, I'd love to meet her." Katalina beamed.

"Perhaps one day. She's not good with strangers—she won't even go near Selene. It's the funniest thing, because Selene'll get all pouty about it and say she 'likes canines better, anyway'." I chuckled, then remembered something, "Oh, by the way…"

"Yes?" she said.

"Like I said yesterday, I plan to train you in magic every day after school."

"Yes! I'm ready to go!" she said, overly-enthusiastic.

"At least you've got spirit." I sighed.

"Teach me well!"

I gave a mildly sardonic laugh, "That's what I'll do. Don't start complaining, now—it could always be my brother the Emperor tutoring you, after all."

"I'll do my best! I really, _really_ want to get admitted after all." she nodded.

"That's a good attitude to have." We had walked to the way where the hall with the classroom and the hall to lead towards the prefect's office split ways. "Alright. I'll be going."

"Huh? The classroom's that way." she looked a bit bemused.

"I've got something to take care of." I had to grab a few things I'd left behind in my brother's office. And there were a few papers I needed to give to the headmaster sometime today.

"Oh, okay. See you later, then."

…. …. ….

She made it through classes alright today, so afterwards I led her to one of the open fields by the North Forest. I remember Klaus telling me about how Selene pretty much wrecked his office with her first attempt at a wind spell.

They had training outside after that.

"All right," I said, finding a good spot, "let's start."

"Got it!" she said cheerfully.

I held out a grimoire I checked out from the library. It was one Selene had used a while back—while it had an attitude, she said, it was very helpful. "Oh, before we start, here. Take this."

"Is this...?"

"A grimoire. Since I was in the library during lunch, I borrowed it for you."

"Thanks." She smiled up at me, and it gave me this funny feeling in my stomach. "So what kind of book is it?" When she attempted to open it, it spoke.

"Ouch! Treat me with care!" It scolded.

She nearly dropped it in surprise, "Huh? What?" She looked around, clearly trying to find the source of the voice. Has she never seen a talking book before? They're pretty common place in magical communities...but then again, wasn't she the only one with magic in her town? So I guess it'd make sense if she's never seen one. "Was that you?" she asked, looking at me.

"Of course not, I don't sound that hoarse." I sighed. She was a bit thick sometimes, wasn't she?

"Right. That's true." she blinked in surprise because the carbuncle started hissing at the book.

"Here!" the grimoire cried, "Look down! Here!"

"Woah! This book can talk?" And she did drop it this time out of shock, causing it to cry out. Oh gosh, that's a library book, remember? Be more careful! "Ah! I'm sorry!"

"What're you doing?" it griped, "I'm old already! What if my spine broke?" I'd fix it with magic, duh. Since I'm her tutor, I'm technically responsible for her actions.

"Forgive me…"

I withheld a smile. She was cute, sometimes. "I figured you would be able to use that talking grimoire."

"Hurry and pick me up! Good grief…" the book whined. She did as it ordered.

"Okay," I began, "Now we'll start." She nodded, so I continued. "First, let's see...try to make this twig grow longer with magic." I picked up the twig at me feet and handed it to her.

She put it at her feet and readied her wand, then looked at me, "So what's the spell?"

"Ahem!" the grimoire cut in, "You need to say the name of the object and the command for making it grow. The spell activated by the object name, followed by the word 'Tender'. For this branch, use the word 'Rahmuls'."

"Okay, now try to make that into a spell." I encouraged.

"I command thee, make this twig grow! 'Tender Rahmuls'!" She waved her wand and a puff of smoke came up from the twig. Then there was a hissing sound, and the twig started slithering towards her. Wha…? Katalina shrieked, "It's a snake!" as the carbuncle tried to scare it off.

"Calm down, idiot!" I snapped, "It's a twig, right?"

"B-but it moves like a snake!"

I sighed, "Then use a spell to turn it back to normal."

"Back to normal? Oh, hmm…"

"You can't even do something so simple?" the grimoire complained, making Katalina apologize. "The spell to restore an object is 'I command thee to return to thine true form! Supesman Mundi!"

She nodded and brandished her wand, repeating the incantation, causing another puff of smoke. "Did it work?"

Nope. Instead, it just grew wings and was now fluttering around. This magic of hers makes absolutely no sense. Now I do wish Klaus was here—he'd probably have a much better idea of how to help her. No! _I_ have to figure this out! I can't keep depending on him to help me. The carbuncle started chasing the flying snake twig around, squeeing happily.

"Why?!" Katalina groans.

"Idiot!" I scolded, "Why did you give it wings?"

"I'm sorry!"

"Fine." I waved my wand, "Supesman Mundi!" The twig poofed back to normal and fell to the ground. "You're really…" I wasn't quite sure how to finish it without being mean.

"I'm so sorry…"

Nevermind that. "Have you ever successfully used your magic before?"

"Um, the magic I use on animals usually works." She says, a bit hesitantly.

"On animals, huh?" I said thoughtfully, "Well, it does seem like your awful magic turns objects into living things." I folded my arms, thinking of how to help her. "Okay. Let's try it this way. Instead of objects or plants, let's use something more organic."

"Organic?"

"For starters, let's try some magic on me."

"What?! On you?"

Don't make me regret this. "Come on. Use that growth spell to make me taller." Normally it's harder to work magic on people and animals, but her magic seems to be reversed a bit.

"Impossible! I can't do that!" she cried, "Look at what happened to that twig. What if I hurt you?"

"Do you realize where you are? This is a magic academy. Apart from the teachers, even the students here were selected from the best wizards. With a few exceptions, of course. If something happens, and I can't do anything about it myself, there are excellent wizards who can help." I assured her, "In the first place, as long as I have a wand and can enchant my spells, I'll be fine."

"That might be true, but…" She said nervously. Oh great. Now she's making me nervous.

"Don't back down now. Go ahead, give it a try." I encouraged her, "On living beings your spells work, right? A human is a living being, too."

She nodded, still looking unsure. She rolled up her sleeves, taking a deep breath, and spoke, "H-here I go."

"Please hurry up." Nothing is worse than waiting in uncertainty.

"Are we really doing this?" Gosh dang it stop giving me puppy eyes you're not getting out of it! No matter how cute you are!

"Just do it!" I snapped.

"O-okay." She took a deep breath, "I command the, make this person grow, Elias Rahmuls!"

My eyes widened, "Hey!" Crap crap crap crap…

"Watch out!" the grimoire said, too late to count, "For this spell you must use the word for 'human', not the person's name."

"What?"

"Hmph. Too late."

No duh.

I heard her cry out for the spell to stop, but it was too late and I was enveloped by a light. I squeezed my eyes shut—this is not going to end well. "Wa-!" I cried in vain. A puff of smoke—why is it always smoke with her?—surrounded us.

I felt myself sitting on the ground. I must have fallen over. I felt a bit dizzy… "Pgee!" (What's this?) Wait...that wasn't a human voice! I saw carbuncle approach, and it wasn't that much smaller than I was. I looked down at myself. I was definitely not human.

"Huh? C-cute!" Katalina gasped.

"Pgeeee!" (Is this really the time to talk about how cute I am?) I squealed at her. Oh gosh...please say she understands me...please…

"It seems pretty angry?" She seemed confused. Did she not know it was me?!

"Pgee! Pgee!" (It's me! Elias!)

She blinked, "What? Elias? Are you Elias?" Did you not just hear me?!

"Pgee!" (That's right!)

"N-no way…" she moaned, "What now? I turned Elias into a wild boar piglet!"

"Pgee! Pgee!" (Well hurry up and change me back!) "Pgee! Pgee!" (Like this, I can't cast a spell on myself!)

"Uhm, uhm, the spell for restoring something was...uh…'I command thee…"

"One moment." The grimoire cut in, "You can't use that spell on a human that was transformed completely."

"Really? I didn't know." Well no duh!

"Besides," it added, "you ended up with a piglet because you tried your spell on a human! It would have been better if you had used it on yourself!"

"H-hey! Couldn't you have told me sooner that my spell was wrong?" she defended.

"Don't blame me for your lack of skill." it retorted, causing her to slump.

"Pgee! Pgee pgee!" (Could you two stop arguing?)

She stood up straight again, "Oh, you're right. Sorry. Grimoire, do you know something that could help?"

"Well, there might be a few things, but with your level of skill and power most of them are completely beyond you." it stated. I was hoping he wouldn't say that. "I have to warn you, undoing a human transformation is very difficult."

"No way…" she sighed, sounding completely hopeless.

"Well, there is an option even you can manage."

Oh no. Oh please no. Not that. Not that. _Please_.

"Really?" she said, "Tell me!"

It shifted a bit towards me, "Should I tell her, Mr. Honour Student?"

I choked on my answer, "P-pgee…" (That's...well…). I opened and closed my mouth but couldn't seem to get any sense out. Oh gosh this is so embarrassing…

"What is it? Please tell me! I want to turn him back to normal." she begged the book.

"Pgee!" (Hey! Grimoire!) "Pgee!" (Just...just say it...)

"Um, Mr. Grimoire? Elias said it's okay to say it." More like get it over with before I die of embarrassment.

"Can't he tell you himself? What an amature." And you're a talking book. Just remember how easy it would be to burn you into total nonexistence. It's pages started turning, "Here it is, this part." And _you_ can't just tell her?

"Where?"

The book sighed, then read itself. Wow. That's a weird statement. "The easiest method to undo a complete transformation is as follows: when the magical power of the one who cast the spell is temporarily transferred to the victim, that spell will be negated. Note that this can also be used for a curse, in which case…"

"Okay, that's enough!" Katalina cut him off, "So how does that work? How can I transfer magical energy?"

"The method is easy. You can transfer by connecting your lips and breathing your magic into the other person. In short, a kiss. That's it." Was it just me, or did that stupid book sound smug?

And that revelation caused Katalina to start panicking. "A k-kiss? Kiss, as in, an actual kiss?"

"Pgeee!" (Don't be so loud! Stop saying it!)

"B-but a kiss...I've never kissed anyone before!" What, and you think I have? Is anyone _else_ about to have a panic attack?

"P-pgeh! Pgee pgee!" (Why are you even confessing that?) "Pgee pgeee!" (And let me tell you, it's not like I want to either!) I had an idea. "Pgeh pgee!" (Okay. All right! In that case, maybe I'll just stay this way forever!) Yes! That's it! "Pgeepgeepgee!" (I'll live in the woods and eat leaves and bugs if I have to!) I tensed, preparing to bolt into the woods.

"No! Wait! Don't rush things, Elias!" she cried, and scooped me into her hands before I could escape.

"Pgee! Pgee!" (What are you doing? Let me go!) Oh sun just kill me now. I could feel my heartbeat begin to palpitate.

"No! Do you really want to live as a wild boar piglet? Nature can be cruel, you know!"

I felt myself losing my fight, "Pgee...pgee…" (What the...is that how you want to persuade me?)

"But it's about survival of the fittest out there! And you would rank pretty low on the food hierarchy!"

"Pgee...pgeh. Pgee pgee." (Wha...what's that supposed to mean?) Even thought I knew exactly what she meant. (By the way, how did an idiot like you come up with the word 'hierarchy' anyway?)

She ignored that last bit, "In any case, you can't go and stay like this forever. Besides, I'm the one who cast the spell. It means I'm the only one who can fix it, right?"

"Pgee…" (That's true, but…) Is this really happening? Is she beating me in a battle of logic? Hell seems to have frozen over.

Pigs can now fly.

"Just hold on for a second. I'll do what I can. Please, Elias?" I didn't answer her. "You can't stay like this forever. And what about Selene, and Yukiya? Think about how upset they'll both be if you just vanished into the woods."

I inwardly squirmed from discomfort, "Pgee…pgeh." (Don't make such a sad face. I get it already.)

"Elias…"

"Pgee pgee." (I guess there's no choice.)

"True…" She carefully sat down and began to lean towards me. "T-then, I'm gonna do it…"

"Pgeh…" (Yeah…)

Somehow we ended looking in each other's eyes, and she bit her lip, mumbling, "Cute…"

"Pgee! Pgee! Pgee!" (Hey! What was that look for? I'm not a pet!) I swear, if I was human I can't even explain how red I'd be at the moment.

"Sorry." Stop saying sorry just do it! But she seemed to have frozen and I felt extremely uncomfortable.

"Pgeh! Pgee!" (Hurry up and get this over with!) I squeezed my eyes shut.

"Uh, okay…" a few seconds later I felt a firm press against my snout. A few seconds later.

"Nothing...happened…"

Oh gosh could this get any worse? "Pgee! Pgeh! Pgeee! Pgee!" (Your magical power is way too weak! You novice! Concentrate more!). And stop laughing, Authoress! It's not that funny!

Authoress: Oh, oh yes it is...hahaha XD...this is probably my favorite part of your story! Redo time! Hehehe…

"Sorry…" she took a few deep breaths, "H-here I go…"

"Pgee…" (Yeah…)

She pressed her lips to me again, and a few seconds later, smoke poofed again. I felt myself go back into human form. I opened my eyes to find myself looking up into Katalina's eyes, only a few inches away. I felt my face go red to my ears. I've never been this close to a girl. Ever. And Selene randomly attacking me with a hug or jumping on my back doesn't count. She's like a sister. Oh gosh oh gosh oh gosh...what do I do? What does one do in this situation?

Neither of us moved, or said anything. It was like both of us were frozen under some sort of enchantment. My thoughts rushed far too fast for me to even begin to actually hear them. I felt the warmth of her hand on my shoulder, and one of mine was on her other elbow, my other hand pressed in the grass. It was as if the wind and time themselves had stopped. We were so close to one another I could feel our breath mingling. How is it that I never noticed how pure brown her eyes were? They were the same shade as my favorite brand of chocolate...beautiful…

"E-Elias...?" she breathed.

I snapped out of my daze in an instant, "Whaaa! Ah, er...!" I jerked back, standing up "S-shut up! Don't say a word! W-what's with you anyway? Didn't you say you wouldn't fail on a living being?"

She looked like she was about to cry, "I-I'm sorry!"

"L-let's end it here today! T-the training is over!" I couldn't even bring myself to meet her eyes. I whirled around and started walking away as fast as I could, face crimson and heart pounding.

"Forgive me…" I heard her say softly as I continued my running away. It startled me so much I nearly bumped into a tree. What was I doing? I don't know. I don't have a clue. I wasn't sure what the heck I was _supposed_ to do.

"We'll try again tomorrow!" I called, not even looking at her.

"Y-yes!"

I made my way to the lake. I sat beneath a weeping willow someone had planted near it a number of years ago. Leaning against the trunk, I tried to organize my thoughts. I hated this confusion, this uncertainty.

And realized I was acting quite a bit like Klaus was a handful of months ago.

Oh crap.

I was in love.

* * *

 **Fun Fact 8** : I have to admit that this chapter was my favorite in the original series. Piglet Elias was just so adorable! The picture was priceless, too—did you _see_ Eli's face? XD The awesome irony is that according to , my patronus _is_ a wild boar. Irony at it's finest, no?


	9. Chapter 8

I learned things while writing this chapter. MC says her parents died two years ago, but in Joel's route they died when she was much younger. And, she said (it might have been in chapter 7) to Yukiya that she wasn't all that good at music, yet in Joel's (and in Cerim's) that wasn't a problem. What the heck Solmare?! Keep the facts straight! But since I'm kind of cutting out the childhood friends part between Joel and this OC, and the fact the Cerim will be part of the next generation, it guess I'll let it go. For now.

Daisy Pragnya: I'm glad you like these stories so much, as well as the last chapter. It makes me so happy that people like them. :)

TheFallenHer0: Thankfully he doesn't have to worry forever, and that his fears won't actually come to life. And I fixed the one part you mentioned. Honestly, for a typo, it was one that could cause a lot of confusion, so thanks for pointing it out. As for Elias' ability to hide his feelings, he really can't. It's very obvious to everyone...except Katalina, who is just as oblivious as he is. :)

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Chapter 8—Be Yourself

 _I seemed to be in the courtyard, the one we used in class, and where I'd often sit at lunch with Selene and Yukiya most days. I hadn't eaten lunch here since Selene went back to Terra. It had a pleasantly nostalgic feeling, when the rest of the class isn't here._

" _Elias?" The voice was familiar. It was her._

" _Katalina?" I looked over my shoulder and smiled._

" _Elias…" she repeated, seeming surprised about something. I'd never smiled like this at her before, and wasn't sure why I was. I mean, I had admitted to myself that I liked her, but I was no where close to saying it out loud, and even further from actually telling anyone, Katalina in particular._

 _I'm not sure why, but I started walking towards her, feeling strangely bold, "Close your eyes." I told her._

" _Huh?"_

" _Hurry up." I encouraged._

" _B-but…" she seemed a bit unsure of what to do._

" _If you don't, I'll just do it like that." Do what? I wasn't even sure what I was saying._

 _She widened her eyes instead, confused, "Do what?!"_

 _I smirked playfully. I don't do that. "Isn't it obvious?" No, no it's not...what am I doing, exactly?_

" _E-Elias…" her voice had become lower. I wonder why._

" _Stay still." I whispered, my own voice deeper than usual. I leaned towards her, feeling emotions run rampant in my chest. But right before my lips touched hers…_

I started, jolting up. I found myself sitting upright in my bed, an uncomfortable feeling between my legs. Crap. Crap. Crap. My face is bright red as I remember a certain "talk" Klaus gave me when I turned twelve. It was normal, he said. Ha! As if!

There was the barest amount of light was filtering in through the window. I glanced at Yukiya's bed. He was already gone. Which meant it was past five thirty. I felt uncomfortably warm underneath the covers, so I threw them off. At least I'm alone for my mortification. Might as well get ready.

Oh gosh...talk about an embarrassing dream...something's wrong with me…

…. …. ….

I was trying to avoid thinking about, er, that dream when I spotted Katalina. She was hunched over, hands on her knees, trying to catch her breath. She stood up again and noticed me, "Elias!"

"Yes?" I said, trying to fight a blush as I looked at her, and trying to keep my face blank.

"G-good morning." She chirped as her cheeks flushed a little. I'm going to say it's because she was in a hurry, yeah…

"Good morning." I replied calmly.

"Oh? Elias, aren't you rather late? Did you oversleep?"

No. Maybe. "Don't lump me together with you."

"Okay…" she laughed awkwardly.

"As you know, I'm the housemaster of the dorm." I sighed, "I'm late because I took care of a sick student, and I've already told the professor that I'd be late." One of the younger students had collapsed, pale and feverish, in the hall of the dorm. It turns out that he'd been under the weather the past few days and had been trying to ignore it. This is why you nip things in the bud and take care of yourself.

"I see…"

"But it seems you did oversleep."

"Ah, yes…"

"You have bed hair."

"What?!" She quickly moved her hands to her head, attempting to smooth and fix it.

I couldn't help but smile a bit, "I was joking." Not really, but she looked cute, bedhead or not.

"You're so mean!" she pouted.

I raised an eyebrow, "Shouldn't you be running? The bell will ring soon."

"Oh no!" she gasped, "I'm glad I got to talk to you! See you in class!"

"Yeah…" And why did my mind chose now to bring _that_ dream to the forefront?

…. …. ….

I made it to class a few minutes after the bell rang, and took my seat. I felt my eyes focus on some random point in front of me, and became lost in my thoughts. I couldn't even hear the lesson, and it didn't seem all that important. My mind kept on going over yesterday's events and this morning's dream, trying to make sense of them. No wonder Klaus was such a wreck when he thought Selene was going out with Xavier Moonwalker. This concept of love was "one heck of a confusing doozy." as Selene says. Of course, she refers to all sorts of things with that phrase.

"Goldstein!"

I started. That was Professor Schuyler. "Ah, yes?"

"What's wrong. This isn't like you." Really? The _one_ time I space out I get caught?

"Excuse me." I said, standing up. I'm hoping my assumption that he asked a question wasn't wrong…

"I asked which magic tool can reject curses."

At least it was an easy one. "Yes. The Veil of Sanctus can bounce back a curse. This veil bears divine protection. As long as you wear it, curses can't touch you. However, it is only a preventive tool. For a curse that has been cast already, you can use the Dagger of Reberrio—in which case you also need a spell to return the curse. It is a spell that requires quite a lot of magical power. In short, once you are cursed, it becomes difficult to undo it."

"Good. As expected. However, when your older brother had this class, he gave the exact same answer." The professor said, "You cannot betray a bond by blood, or maybe your brother's influence was too strong."

"I'm sorry." There wasn't much else I can say. Yes, Klaus was instrumental in my learning magic. And yes, I was only as good as a textbook. I hated being compared to Klaus, as much as I love my brother. I want to be my own person, not just Klaus' little brother.

"No need to apologize." The professor dismissed, "Your answer was correct. Still, if you don't want to forever stand in the shadows of your father and elder brothers, you'll need to think for yourself."

I sat down, feeling a crease between my brows. Did he think that I didn't already know that? What did he think I was trying to do? I'll never be able to hold a candle to the brilliance of my brothers. At this point, I almost think it's worthless to try.

…. …. ….

"That concludes today's class." I barely heard the professor's words over my thoughts. I kept my eyes on my desk. That looks weird. Mechanically, I reached over and pulled a book out of my bag, opening it to a random page.

I was in love. And I couldn't tell whether it was a bad thing or a good thing. Should I work for or against it? Should I try to ignore it? Or should I embrace it? Ugh...why is this emotion thing so hard? I vaguely registered Luca speaking, and Katalina responding. I felt something nasty and mean twist in the pit of my stomach at that.

"Is he in shock about what Professor Schuyler told him?" Luca inquired. Nosy good-for-naught. The professor didn't tell me anything I didn't already know. "That can't be. There's no way Elias is that soft." Luca continued. You'd be surprised if I ever told you how much I hated it...but then again, I hate you so I'd never tell you to begin with. "I mean, he's seemed weird since this morning, like something's been on his mind. Very unusual for a stern overachiever like him." If I could, I'd curse you for being so perceptive. And better an overachiever than an underachiever like you. "He always seemed like a precise machine." Shut up. Shut up. Shut up…

"Don't talk about Elias like that!" To my surprise, Katalina rose quickly to my defense, snapping at Luca.

"Hmm? You're defending him, Kittycat?"

"Huh?" she sounded confused.

"I wouldn't have imagined you defending him like that before."

"W-well, you know, I'm his buddy!"

"Ohh? I wonder if being his buddy is the only reason…" Luca teased. Shut up, Luca. Shut up.

"W-what do you m-mean?" She stuttered.

I decided. He knows I'm listening. That I'm hearing all of this. I start swearing at him in my head, but it doesn't stop his talking. "I thought you might have some other kind of special feelings to him." It's times like this when I really miss Selene and her ability to smack him upside the head and tell him to behave.

"Why would that be?!" Well, she was quick to dissuade him…why do I feel kind of hopeless now?

Luca made a humming noise, "Guess I'm thinking too much, Kittycat?"

"Yes! You are!" Katalina snapped. Please, please, please say it's out of irritation for Luca and not the possible thoughts of maybe possibly liking me...please…

I stood up from my chair, knocking it back with a loud thudding sound, and shoved the book into my bag. I couldn't help but glance over at her, but I regretted it, because for a moment our eyes met. I immediately averted my gaze, walking out of the classroom.

I heard a quiet, somewhat confused and worried, "Elias…" as I hurried off.

I avoided her best I could until the end of classes. But then I had to suck it up and go talk to her. I told her we'd be training after classes today.

She was yawning when I walked over to her. "Sommer."

"Oh, Elias!" she immediately jumped, closing her mouth and sitting up straight.

"Too late. I saw your big mouth already." I said blankly.

She didn't seem to know how to respond. "Uh.."

I moved right into business, "About your training today—let's meet behind the school building."

"Okay. Got it. Thanks!" She smiled brightly at me, and my heart sped up a bit.

"I'll go, then." I needed to get out of here before I started blushing.

"Ah, wait!" she cried.

I paused, "What is it?"

"Why don't we go together?"

And there's the blush. Gosh dang it. "I don't mind." At least my voice isn't out of whack like my blush-control function that seems to be MIA.

But she didn't seem to notice, and cheerfully replied, "Okay!"

Thankfully it was a quick walk to the field behind the school, but was long enough for me to completely beat back my blush. I put my bag off to the side, and she did the same.

I turned to her, "Alright. Today we'll continue learning how to cast spells on living beings. However," I added, "I'll pass on being turned into a piglet again."

"Yeah, sorry about that…" she said sheepishly.

"It's fine. It was an accident." And that's all. "It couldn't be avoided. I'll forget about it, so you'd better do the same." Or, rather, I'm going to try and forget about it. I had decided that would be the best course of action for a while. I have my reasons.

"Okay." she agreed, biting her lower lip. She looked slightly hurt, or was it just me?

"Uhm…" I wasn't sure what to do now.

She looked at me, head tilted, "What?"

"I've heard that, er...for ladies, a first time for anything is very important." Percy had actually told me that, a while ago. Not Klaus. Klaus would of made fun of me. Percy was a lot kinder about such stuff. That didn't help the blush that had spread across my face.

"Huh?" and now I seem to have confused her.

I sighed, forcing myself to elaborate, "You see, it was an accident, so therefore, it doesn't doesn't count. As a kiss. So, er, that wasn't really your first one." Oh sun just kill me now.

"Y-yeah?"

"Just don't worry about it…"

"O-okay?"

I changed the subject very abruptly. I couldn't help it. "Now, let's get back on topic. About today's training. Today, we'll have this guy cooperate." I reached out and plucked the pink carbuncle off her shoulder. "You'll cast spells on him."

"On carbuncle?" she now sounded nervous.

"If something goes wrong, I can save him." I assured her. So far, none of her bungle's have been fatal. Just annoying. And a mess.

"You're right! I see." she sounded relieved.

"Let's start with making it one size bigger." No use going onto other things until this is mastered.

"Okay!"

"And what is the spell for making something grow bigger?" Suddenly the grimoire was floating next to her.

"Ah! Grim!" she yelped, startled, "When did you get out of my bag?" It seems she's given the book a nickname, as well.

"When did you plan on taking me out?!" It—I guess I'll start calling it Grim in my head, it's better than 'it'—snaps. "Listen, here is the way to make the object grow bigger with magic. The first half of the spell, you need to state the object's name, then command to make it grow." And that was pretty much the exact same thing Grim had said yesterday. "The latter half of the spell is 'Clesko' followed by the name of the object. You must combine these two parts to make a magic formula to complete the spell. Furthermore, you need to concentrate to imagine the size you want while chanting your spell. That is all." Well that was long winded.

"Understood." Katalina nodded.

I set the carbuncle on the ground, "Okay, now try it." I looked down at the pink fluff ball. "Stay still now, okay?"

It made a cheerful noise, and Katalina readied her wand. "O carbuncle, I command you to grow! Carbuncle Clesko!" She waved the wand, and a circle of light surrounded the creature. A puff of smoke appeared with a pop. It drifted away, leaving a now-smaller carbuncle with a squee an octave higher than normal. I resisted the urge to facepalm at this fail, but Katalina's heart eyes returned, "Whaa! It's sooooo cute!"

"Hey." I waved my hand in front of her face, "You were supposed to make him grow, so why did he become smaller?"

She seemed to realize what had happened, "Ah. Right."

"Oh my. Well done." Grim snickered.

"Hmph!"

I withheld my smile, "Try that spell once again."

"O-okay." She had to try several more times before she got it back to it's normal size. "Is it finally fixed?"

"Yeah." I shook my head slightly, "But returning it to normal wasn't really the purpose."

"Y-you're right…"

"This is hopeless…" Grim sighed.

"Let's take a short break." I suggested. She clearly needed one. And so did I. Tutoring was a lot harder than it looked. I don't give Klaus enough credit for putting up with me for so many years, and then Selene for the past handful of months. "I'm beat."

"Sorry about that." she said, sounding miserable, "It just doesn't seem to go well."

"Well, I sort of expected it wouldn't from the start." This seemed to depress her more. Crap. "But I guess it didn't grow wings or turn into a snake this time, so you could call it progress."

This perked her up, "Really?"

"Yeah," I said, feeling myself smile a bit, "You're doing your best."

"Thanks." she smiled back at me.

"Hmpf." Grim said, "Good old days, huh? I'll rest in your bag for a moment. Call me when you start again."

"Oh, sure." Katalina nodded.

"Even so, we only have five more days to get you accepted…" I said, more to myself than anyone.

"Only five…" she replied softly.

"Somehow, I have to make you succeed at least once. Once you get the hang of it, I think it'll work out."

"Get the hang of it? But it's all so difficult…" she absently watched the carbuncle, which, despite being a magic test subject for so long, was running around, full of stamina and energy.

"He's pretty energetic." I commented.

She smiled, "Yeah, he is."

"I'm pretty exhausted though." I replied, shaking my head.

She nodded, agreeing, "True. Me too." She stretched her arms up, then let herself fall backwards on the grass. She sighed contently, gazing upwards. "The sky is so beautiful today."

I felt a corner of my lips quirk, "It's not very admirable for a lady to lie down in the grass like that."

She didn't even seemed bothered by my comment, "But it feels so nice!" It looked like it did.

"Hmm."

"Why don't you try it? But I guess you wouldn't—"

I plopped down next to her, laying back. My feet were the opposite direction of hers, but our heads weren't that far from one another. I had one of my hands next to my head, brushing back some of my bangs with my knuckles.

"Elias?"

"You're right." I said simply, "It does feel nice. Once in a while, I guess this is okay."

"Yeah." she replied.

I stared up at the sky, just watching the clouds. It's been a while since I've done something like this, just layed back and relaxed, not doing anything. "The sky _is_ beautiful." Funny how I always seem to take the small things for granted.

"Isn't it?" she breathed, "It's just so blue...I used to just lay down and look up at the sky like this often in the past. I've been busy, so it's been a while."

The past? How far in the past? "The past?"

"Yes." she sighed fondly, "There's these large meadows near my home, just a small walk into the woods. I used to go and lie down in the grass there a lot."

The Goldstein estate had several homes across the country, so I had seen lots of places. But I'd never really been to a small town for more than a tourist thing, usually with my mother. "Huh, what kind of place is your hometown?"

"It's deep in the countryside up north, surrounded by mountains, with lots of farmland. I used to work as an advisor for animals, and would heal them when they got hurt or sick." she replied, sounding a bit wistful.

"I see. You fully made use of your magical ability then." How lucky, to have such a special talent. I'm envious, honestly.

"Yup. Even someone like me was regarded as a reliable wizardess by the townspeople."

I glanced over at her, and could help but tease a bit. "Reliable, huh?"

"H-hey!" she protested, "I know! I know I'm not that good. I knew I was still a total amateur. I've never succeeded casting magic on something other than animals."

"You're truly strange." I said. Strange was a compliment. "Casting spells on animals is pretty high level magic, after all."

"I guess it is strange." At least she didn't seem offended.

"Well, it's not that surprising."

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Exactly what I said." I looked over and caught her eye, causing us both to smile. This was wonderful. It's been forever since I've felt so relaxed, at peace. I hadn't realized how stressed I've been lately until it subsided. "Are your parents doing all right, with you being gone?" They must miss her. Heaven knows my own mother writes me at least weekly, and is constantly sending me things. I haven't seen her in a month or so. I should probably visit home after Klaus and Selene come back.

"Ah, umm…" Katalina's didn't seem to know how to respond.

"What's wrong?" I asked, a bit worried.

"Actually..." she began, "My parents passed away in an epidemic about three years ago.

"...I'm sorry." It was me apologizing this time. "I've asked something I shouldn't have." Leave it to me to make things awkward.

"No, no, I'm fine. I'm pretty much over it by now."

Wait…does that mean… "So, the past three years you've lived on your own?"

"I did. But I was never lonely." She said, doing her best to sound happy, "The people in town were so nice to me, and there were lots of animals."

"I see." I muse. But you can be lonely in a crowded room. And trust me when I say I know how that feels. But at least I always had my brothers, and my mother. And more recently, Yukiya and then Selene. She never had any of that.

"That's why I want to learn more and become better at my magic, so I can repay them all for the kindness they've shown me."

"You're always able so positive."

"That's about my only merit." she giggled, but then became a little more serious, "You know, after I lost my parents, there was a saying I always repeated to myself."

"A saying?"

"Yes. 'Don't be disheartened, look forward and smile brightly. Things can always get better and they could always be worse.'"

I smiled at that. It sounds like something she'd live by, "Smile brightly, huh? It's true, you're always smiling."

"But I feel sad sometimes, too. I'm only human, after all." She looked over at me, "What about you, Elias? What's your home like?"

"My home?" I looked up at the sky, trying to think of what to say. After a while I smiled a bit, "Well, my mother just loves to dote on me as if I was still a young child." She smiled at that. "Klaus is in his last year here, and I'm very close to him. He was the one who taught me magic in the first place, and he's been teaching and helping me my entire life. I really look up to him. Most people think he's scary and gruff and whatever else, but he just doesn't have a filter. He's gotten a bit better at that since Selene barged into everyone's lives. I've been egging him on for months just to get it over with and ask her out already." Katalina laughed, and I continued, "Then there's Percy, my oldest brother. I like him well enough, but he's so much older than I am that we never really got a chance to become all that close. Ten years is a bit hard to connect over. It's been getting a bit easier as we've both gotten older. The only other member is my father. He and I have never really gotten along. To him, in comparison to my brothers, I'm a disappointment in his eyes. A lot of people are envious of those in the Goldstein family. But it's not as great as it's made out to be."

"Oh?"

"My father and both my brothers are excellent wizards, so from an early age people just kept saying and expecting that I would be just as great. So I, too, believed it without any questions. Because of that, I did my best to endure the most demanding education. I had to be the best in each and every subject. And that was just to keep up with what my brothers did naturally. Klaus is a genius level wizard. Percy is amazing with people and diplomatics. I'm not like that, not like either of them. But I finally understood—after I saw my true self inside the Persona Mirror. As you can tell, I didn't want to acknowledge it, but that was who I really am. Fulfilling the expectations of my father and everyone else was normal. I believed my magic skill was my meaning in life. On the other hand, somewhere in my heart I longed to run away from the pressure. Compared to my father and brothers, I don't have an innate talent for magic. So I worked harder than anyone else to try and compensate for that. But no matter how hard I tried, it was like I was haunted by my own inferiority. I hoped that being skilled at magic would give me a reason to live this life."

"So if you didn't have magic, Elias, would your existence be meaningless?" Her question was sudden, and I couldn't quite place the emotion behind it.

"That's what I thought."

"That can't be! That's not right!" she cried, turning sideways to face me.

"Sommer…" I was surprised.

She smiled at me, "I really, really like your magic. It's smooth, graceful, and beautiful. I wish I could be just like you. Isn't it because you like magic that you can use it like that? Thinking about magic, studying it, understanding it and being dedicated is why you can use such amazing magic. But it's only because you love it that you can! So how can you think of it that way?" My eyes widened, shocked. "Instead of becoming a wizard for your father and others, why not become a great wizard for yourself?"

I hadn't actually thought about it that way. I remember Selene saying something along the lines of "sometimes the persons involved are too close to the issue to see the answer" at some point. "For my own sake…"

"Yes." she confirmed, "For you, Elias."

"Truly, you are…" I put my hand to my forehead, trying to figure out what to say to that. Eventually I dropped it and gently smiled at her, "Maybe you should worry about yourself first."

She wrinkled her nose, "Geez! Don't tell me that!"

I grinned, and couldn't help but laughing. She joined in, and we both just laid there and laughed. We eventually calmed down. "But, thank you." I told her, giving her a smile, "Before, you once said that you and me both are the same as the other students at the academy."

"Huh?"

"You said that at the academy it didn't matter if you were a Goldstein or a country bumpkin."

"Eh? Did you hear me back then?"

"I kind of saw the whole thing." I admitted, "And when you said that, I was really surprised."

"What? Why?"

"Because there was someone who didn't regard me as 'a Goldstein'. Someone who wasn't from another dimension where the most outrageous things are acceptable. Just a girl from the country. Well, you did say some harsh things after that, though."

"Sorry...I really didn't mean it quite the way I said it. I was really annoyed with those sisters and kind of snapped."

"Don't worry about it. I know how the sisters are, trust me. They even scare _me_ sometimes. Selene is constantly scolding them for being creepy and irritating."

"Still, I said some really mean things about you." She said, sounding apologetic.

"Well, I lashed out at you too. I should be the one saying sorry. I had no reason other than my own stupid pride." I sighed.

"Elias…" she shook her head, "To be honest, at first I thought you were a bit scary and hard to approach. But I know now I was wrong. You're super serious most of the time, sure, but pretty friendly and gentlemanly…"

You wouldn't be saying that if you knew about my dream this morning…

"W-what are you saying?!" I could feel my face turning red again.

She blinked, as if she hadn't realized what she had been saying, then quickly averted her eyes, blushing a bit herself.

I looked down at my hands. "Either way...what you said made me happy." I mumbled.

"Don't you think there are others apart from me who think the same? Well, not counting Selene. She's a special case. But I-I'm sure that it's just you don't know it."

I looked over at her, my eyes wide. But then I smile, "You really are a strange one."

"Ah! That _again_?" she pouted, but her eyes were sparkling.

"When Selene comes back, ask her about her opinion of that word." I chuckled, "Let's start again, shall we?" I sat up entirely this time.

She smiled widely, "Yes."

"Did you call me?" Grim said from her bag. No, but I can see where the confusion could come from.

"We didn't call you yet!" Katalina whined.

I decided to just get back to it, and stood up. I have no doubt that stupid book was listening to the entire conversation. "We might as well." I sighed, "Let's try to cast that spell on the carbuncle again." I beckoned to the pink puff ball, which was _still_ running around (how in the world can something so small have _so_ much energy?), and it came running over, sitting in front of her. At least it's obedient. She smiled and stood up, brushing herself off. "All right. When you cast a spell, don't just say it, but focus your magic into one point." I coached, "Also, keep the vision of what you want to do clearly in your mind."

"Got it!" She took a breath, readied her wand, and cast the spell. After the puff of smoke cleared, "How did it go this time?" I smiled slightly and nodded at her—it was about the size of Yukiya's wolf now. Her eyes widened and she broke into a smile. "I-I did it! I did it! It worked!"

"You can do it if you try!" I congratulated her as carbuncle squeed and rolled around.

"I did it, Elias!" She grabbed my hand and started jumping up and down in excitement, taking me completely by surprise. "Thank you thank you thank you, Elias!" And, yet again, I went completely red. A hundred curses upon my way-to-easily-triggered blush! "Ah! Sorry! I just..." She went to let go, but in a completely uncharacteristic move, I held onto it tightly. Now she turned red.

"Uhm...could I...you…?" Dang words! Dang them all! Just come out!

"Hm? What's that?" she looked confused.

"Nothing!" I gave up and tried to let go, but this time she held onto my hand, causing my eyes to widen.

"Answer me!" she demanded stubbornly.

"...I, er...your name…" I managed to stutter out before looking away. I took a deep breath, and began again. "Would you mind if I called you by your given name?" Not once had I actually called her by it. Out loud, at least.

She broke into a grin, "Yes! Of course! It'd make me super happy!"

"H-happy?" I was not expecting that response, actually. Oh gosh. I can just feel the social awkwardness increasing. It's probably only one-sided, though. It always seems to be...oh gosh, someone help me…

"I always thought it would be nice if you just called me by my given name." she was still smiling.

"D-don't misunderstand!" I blurted. "It just seems unnatural to be to formal with my buddy...! Besides, I hate it when people call me Goldstein."

Authoress: Ha! As if, Eli. You just want to call Katalina by her name because you're in _loooove~_ Elias and Katalina, sitting in a tree— I…

Shut up Authoress! Go away! No one wants to hear from you!

Authoress: Fine. I'll leave. Say goodbye to the rest of the chapter, you ungrateful bloke!

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Authoress: Haha. Did I scare you? Good. Now back to the chapter. Maybe Eli should be nicer to the creator of Katalina in the future! Hint _hint_!

* * *

"I see." Katalina was still smiling, oh-so-brightly, at me, "Hey, why don't you just try it already?"

"W-why? I have no r-reason to call your name n-now, so wh-why should I?" Oh great. Now I was stuttering…

"'Cause...I want to hear it." she said simply.

I couldn't meet her eyes again. Dang social anxiety or whatever Selene calls it! "Er, um...Ka-Katalina."

"W-woah…" her eyes widened, and her smile, if possible, widened.

"W-what are you smiling at?!" I snapped.

"'Cause I'm just so happy!"

"Say…" I began.

"Yes?"

I steeled myself to bring up something I had been bothered by today in class, and felt my eyebrows furrow a bit before blurting out: "Er...are you in love with Luca?"

She seemed completely taken aback, "What?"

Oh crap. Did I really just say that? "Ack! What am I saying?"

"Elias?" she looked a little confused. I seem to make her confused a lot.

I sighed, "Forget about it. Sorry, it seems I'm not my usual self today. Let's end the training here for today."

"O-okay…"

I turned around, grabbed my bag, and promptly walked away before I said something stupid again.

…. …. ….

When I made it back to the dorm, and into my room, Yukiya made a comment that I looked happy. I guess I was. Very much so. I didn't even feel the need to study. I felt so light I was sure I'd start floating if it weren't for the fact the Snow jumped up onto the top of my head. Normally I hated it when she did it—Yukiya let her do it to him, so she assumed she could do it to me—but I honestly didn't mind at the moment.

I kept replaying the afternoon inside my head. I confessed some things to Katalina that I've never told anyone. I felt comfortable (as much as a socially awkward dork could be around the girl he likes) around her, safe. Happy.

No wonder Klaus thought the whole love thing was worth it.

It totally seemed that way to me.

* * *

 **Fun Fact 9** : How'd y'all like my interruption of the storyline? That's also a reason there really isn't any enders. I do that several more times in the story. Mostly to provide some comic relief in really tense scenes (or because I couldn't resist). That, and I enjoy breaking the fourth wall. I actually do it in my own life sometimes. It's so much fun. Oh, and Selene'll join me in the breaking of the fourth wall at one point or another. Blame Eli for being such a "socially awkward dork." (Note: He's actually quoting something Selene said to him at some point that actually never got said in a chapter.)


	10. Chapter 9

Honestly, this one's a bit shorter than some of the others. Just thought I'd let you know. But, there is another one posted just after this, and that should balance it out. Enjoy!

Yeah, The beginning of that chapter was interesting to write. I mean, I wanted to mimic the dream MC had in the game, but it made more sense to make it a sort of wet dream for innocent little Eli, because those are supposed to be normal for hormonal teenage boys, no? I had to research it a bit (because I tend to do extensive research for the smallest details) and hope no one peeked over my shoulder as I read articles about it. Honestly, I'm worried that someone from IT is going to come and ask my why I'm researching everything from wet dreams to types of knives while on the school wifi. _I'm a writer. I research random things. Please understand that I do not look up baby names because I'm pregnant, or knives because I'm going to stab someone (in real life)._ Writer struggles, eh? And I liked Luca's nickname for her, too. Luca, in my opinion, is someone who likes giving nicknames. And since Selene is "Little Vixen," I thought Kittycat would be appropriate for Katalina. And as much as I loved Eli's route (it's my favorite), I always felt he was lacking something to give him depth as a character, and so I feel the background and the inner thoughts does that. I'm glad you think so, too!

* * *

Chapter 9—Sincere Feelings

I was walking to class the next morning when I heard: "Ah, Elias!" I looked behind me to see Katalina running up to me. "Good morning, Elias." she said brightly, approaching.

And I panicked, my eyes turning wide. I whirled around and scurried off. Oh gosh, what am I doing?

I couldn't bring myself to look at her during class the entire day. While last night I was feeling like my head was in the clouds, this morning I came crashing back into reality.

Oh gosh I acted so embarrassingly yesterday!

I heard carbuncle hissing.

"Haha, it seems it hasn't forgiven me for calling it a hairball. I don't think it likes me." Luca chuckled.

"Oh hush you!" Katalina scolded the pink creature. "Sorry about that…"

"It's all right, I don't mind." Luca said, "That said, something seems off about you. Did anything happen?"

"No, it's nothing really." Other than I was really friendly yesterday and now I'm completely avoiding her. Oh gosh. I'm a terrible person.

"Nothing? That's not how it looks."

"There really isn't anything wrong." she insisted.

"Don't hold back, we're classmates, right? Ask me about anything." Quit flirting you jerk! I thought as I scribbled a magic note.

It irritated me so much I stood up and my chair made a loud scooting noise. I grabbed my bag and released the note. It folded itself into a bird form and fluttered over to Katalina.

"Huh? What's this?" And she's never seen one before. Good job Elias.

"It's a magic note." Luca explained as I left the room.

' _I'd like to cancel today's training. —Elias_ '

I tried to keep my walk calm and even, but I knew that I was trying to hurry away as well. I just couldn't bring myself to face her after that embarrassing display yesterday.

I had made it to a passageway that led to the prefect's office, where I planned to spend the afternoon hiding and studying, when I heard someone call my name.

"Elias!" That was...Katalina. "Wait!"

I froze, then slowly looked behind me. "K-katalina?"

"I read your note." she said as soon as she caught up to me.

"I see." I kept emotion out of my voice and face as best I could. "Then you can go back for today."

"Wait!" she cried when I was about to start walking, "Uhm, did I offend you or what, Elias?" No. You didn't. I was just a lovesick moron yesterday and can't bare to face you now. "You've been avoiding me since this morning."

"I wasn't...avoiding you…" I said weakly. Yes I was, but not because of you. Well, in a way, it was. But not for what you seem to be thinking.

"Don't lie to me…" she said sadly, "I might be an idiot, but this I know. If I did something to make you feel bad, I want to apologize."

"I want to keep my distance from you a bit."

"Huh?" Don't give me that heartbroken face. Please. It's for your own good. It's because of me. Please stop looking like you're going to cry. Please. Please. _Please_. "W-why would you…?"

"I-I don't know very well how to say it…" I don't even know what I looked like at this point. I was hurting because she looked like she was hurting. I didn't want to hurt her. But I've realized that's all I'll do by being around her. If I cut things off now, the pain for her will be minimal, right?

She looked worried. Worried for whom? "Elias…"

"You see, I feel weird when I'm with you." I know why, too, but I can't let you know that. For your own good. "So, I'm sorry, but please leave me alone, for a while."

"O-ok-ay…" Don't make that face. It's killing me. It's hurting me. And I'm going to be selfish and run away from it. So I averted my eyes and left. "Elias…" I heard her whisper. I sped up.

I hurriedly unlocked the prefect's office and shut the door behind me. I didn't even bother turning on the lights. I leaned back against the door and let myself slide to the floor, feeling absolutely miserable. I kept seeing her sad face. And hated myself for causing the beautiful, happy smile of hers to slip away...

They say Fortitudio, my class, is the class of courage.

Ha. What a joke.

…. …. ….

I didn't say a word when I finally got back to the dorm. I went straight to bed without even studying. I couldn't sleep though. So I did my best to make it look like I was, not moving and keeping my breathing even. Until sometime around midnight, when I heard faint movement. I cracked my eyes open to see Yukiya putting on his shoes. Was he going out?

I closed my eyes and listened. His footsteps were almost silent, but that tell-tale click of the door shutting showed that he had left. I sat up. As dormmaster, it was my job to keep the boys in this dorm in order. I got up and crept around, hurriedly getting dressed. I slipped on my shoes and was out the door. I felt completely visible and my heart was pounding, and I felt like I was going to get in trouble. How does Luca do this so often? I was terrified, and it wasn't fun. At all. Luca must be insane.

I wasn't able to find him until I saw him and Katalina disappearing into the woods. What are they doing?! I felt a jealous rage, like a dragon in my stomach. I felt betrayed and angry, though I had no reason to do so. I had no claim on her.

But reason set in as I was about to follow them. Unlike Yukiya, I didn't have an innate sense of direction and would easily get lost if I tried to follow them. But they eventually had to come back. So I went and stood in front of the girls' dorm. Yukiya, being Yukiya, would drop her off before going back to our room. And when they came, I was going to catch them and demand to know what they were doing.

It was over half and hour before they came back. I heard them approach. Neither were talking. I muttered a spell and the end of my wand lit up, illuminating me.

"Elias!" Katalina gasped, before clapping her hand to her mouth. Then she lowered it. "Why are you here?"

"That's my line." I said cooly, a contrast to the raging jealous anger at my core. "What were you doing up until now?" I was glaring at both of them, but mostly Yukiya, who didn't bother to say anything, but looked completely apathetic.

"I-it's not what you think…" Katalina stuttered.

"How so?" I snapped, "I thought it was strange that Yukiya would leave the room, so I followed him. But I lost him on the way, so I waited here. And now, he's come back with you? Explain! Or is it something you can't?"

She looked a bit frightened, but I was far to mad too care at this point, "E-elias…"

"What were you doing with Yukiya?!" I demanded.

"What do you…"

"We can't say." Yukiya said emotionlessly.

Katalina looked surprised, "Y-yukiya?"

My eyes widened. Then my eyes narrowed slightly, "As the dormmaster, I will have to report your suspicious activities to the prefect!" Nevermind that it's me at the moment!

"W-wait!" Katalina cried, "There's no need to get that angry! We just took a walk!"

"Be quiet, you!" I snapped at her.

"No I won't!" she snapped back. "What are you so mad? It's weird, Elias!"

"It's just that as the dormmaster of the boys' dorm, I cannot overlook such acts that are against the rules." Excuses excuses.

This seemed to surprise her, "A-against the rules? It's nothing that bad, is it?"

"It's forbidden to go out at night!"

"I'm sorry. It's true that violating the rules isn't good." Don't give me the puppy eyes. Don't you dare. "But really, I couldn't sleep, so I just went for a walk."

"So what?" I growled, "That doesn't change that you broke the rules, does it?"

Now she was apparently mad, "How mean! You don't need to say it like that? Why are you so angry today, Elias?" Her face turned sad, "Is it...because you hate me or something?" She laughed bitterly, and I was taken aback. "That must be it, you dislike me, so that's why you act so mean. I'm nowhere near as amazing as your precious _Selene,_ so I'm just a pain, aren't I?"

"Th-that's not it…" I said weakly. Selene had nothing to do with it. It was just me and my pride. Me and my stubbornness. Me and my social incompetency.

"Then what is?!" she demanded.

"I-I just get irritated when I look at you." Now she looks like she wasn't going to cry. Damn it!

"Elias." Yukiya inserted, "You went too far."

"It's none of your business, Yukiya!"

"Yes it is. I broke the rules too."

I blink, "Aw, yes, you're right!"

"Elias, calm down."

"I am calm!" I yelled. I paused. He was right. Why is he always right?! "Fine! I won't report you! Do whatever you want!" I stormed off. I don't want to be near them. Either of them!

* * *

 **Fun Fact 10** : I hate making Eli and Yukiya fight and argue. I hate it. I wanted to cry at the end of this chapter.


	11. Chapter 10

Chapter 10—Professor Merkulova's Request

I completely avoided Yukiya. Thankfully, he was gone before I woke up again. I didn't really want to see him at the moment. While my anger from last night had cooled down, I still didn't want to see him. Now I was just feeling ashamed of myself. I was so rude to Yukiya and just plain mean to Katalina. This is why I'm no good for her. I'm just going to shred her to bits at this rate.

Yukiya wasn't in class. I'd completely forgotten that the full moon was in two days. This was about the time when he fell feverish and sick for a few days. I felt terrible now.

I made up my mind to try and help her without being to obvious about it. To try and make up for last night. I started by restoring her potion in Professor Merkulova's. When she turned her potion bright blue (it was supposed to be yellow), I secretly cast the spell reversal spell and changed it back to normal water.

"Elias?" she looked over at me confused.

"That was the wrong color," I told her quietly, "Stay calm and try again."

"Thank you!" she whispered back, smiling at me. I didn't deserve that smile. She went to cast the spell again. This time, it turned a yellow color. When she poured it on the dirt, the plant started to grow. It didn't flower, but it got a lot closer than usual. She's improving.

The professor noticed and went over, congratulating her on improving. He didn't even dock her points, but gave her full score because she'd improved. It's no wonder a lot of people consider Professor Merkulova their favorite professor. Instead of putting everyone on the same level, he graded them on their efforts and how well they personally improved.

After classes, I waited for her. I wanted to make it up to her, still.

"Good. You're still here." I said as she came out of the class.

She looked up, noticing me, "Elias."

"It's time for your special training." I owe her this much. She deserves help.

"Huh?" And I do guess my mood swings are confusing. Lately, I've been worse than Selene is when she's on her _special time_. And that woman makes no effort to tame those swings. At all.

But, instead, I try to act cool because there are parts of me that want to look cool to her. Stupid teenage boy hormones! "Why so surprised?"

"I thought you wouldn't teach me again." she said, somewhat hesitantly.

I look away slightly, "I promised I'd help you get fully admitted, right? Sorry for canceling yesterday."

"Er, ah, no! That's fine!" she smiled at me. Oh gosh that smile...it's aweing.

"I'll be more strict from now on, seeing that you were hopeless in class today." Okay, Elias, tone it down. Or you'll start sounding like Klaus. Oh gosh, what is this thing known as conversation? It seems to be a skill that entirely eludes me.

She hits me lightly on the arm, not even close to hard enough to hurt, "Ah! How mean! Saying I was hopeless is too much!"

The corner of my lips quirked momentarily, "Come on. Let's go already."

"Okay!"

We made it to the courtyard where Klaus and Selene would usually practice, where I chose to have practice today. "Okay, today you'll try to cast spells on non-living things."

"Sure thing!" She said. But then the carbuncle went and sat in front of her and squeed, like it was expecting to be used as a practice tool again.

The corner of my mouth quirked a bit. "Sorry." I told it, "You don't have to do anything this time." I could've sworn the thing pouted for a moment, but it was soon running around in another part of the courtyard, happy as ever.

Katalina watched it, "So carefree…"

"For sure." I agreed. It's a cute little fluffball. I turned to her, "Right. Try to make this book float in the air." I pulled one of the textbooks from my bag.

"Got it." she said.

"Hmm! The spell to make things float!" Grim butted in from inside Katalina's bag, making her grimace slightly. The book floated itself out of the bag, "Dear me, I'm always stuck in that dark place." I'm actually surprised she still has it.

"What, you didn't return it to the library yet?" I asked.

She shook her head, "No, I haven't had time yet."

"You'll pass the due date if you don't." I informed her.

This was clearly news to her, "What?!"

"Just return it tomorrow." I told her.

"Okay."

Grim fluttered his pages nervously, "E-excuse me? Return? You're going to return me? To that dark and dusty place? It's so cramped, I can smell the ink of the book next to me!" You are a book. You cannot smell things.

"Well, even so…" Katalina sighed, "I have to return you before the due date."

And Grim freaked. "I beg you! Please do something about this!"

"I don't think I can…"

"Please! Think of something!" the book begged.

"No. I can't." Katalina repeated, looking mildly uncomfortable. The book then clamped itself onto her leg, like a child begging to go somewhere. Oh, this was hilarious. The girl is arguing with a _book_ of all things. "Hey!" she yelped, "Even if you do that, I can't help you!" She shook her leg, trying to get it off. I put my hand over my mouth, trying _so_ hard not to laugh.

"Don't shake your leg! I'm getting dizzy!" Grim cried. I'm done. I can't take this.

I started laughing harder than I have in a long time. I've been so tense today, and it's like it all broke, the floodgates have opened. This is what Selene, oh-so-long ago, explained to me: a giggle fit. Oh gosh…" I can't stop! Oh gosh, my sides! They're starting to hurt!

"Elias?" I hear her say, bemused.

"S-sorry…" I sputter out, "But, haha, that's just...haha…" My eyes were tearing up. "I never…never thought you'd…quarrel…with a grimoire! Ahahaha! This is…a first!"

"Er…" she didn't seem to know what to make of this. To be honest, neither did I. But at this point I was too far gone to care. "This is kind of shameful…"

"How awkward…" Grim winced.

"Wh-why do you sound embarrassed now, Grim?"

"Pf, hahahahah! Are you two _trying_ to make me laugh?" I roared, the laughter only getting worse. I nearly fall over I'm shaking so hard.

"N-no! I'm not!" she sounded mildly pouty. I just kept laughing. Oh gosh...my sides! I can't breath! Oh gosh...oh gosh…

Eventually, my laughter finally starting winding down, "Sorry, just wait a moment for me to calm myself." She nodded. I sat down on the grass, trying to catch my breath again. Eventually I sighed in contentment, "Being with you is never boring."

"Eh?"

Oh gosh...did I really just say that? "Ah, well, I mean...It's nothing." Great cover up Elias. Just great. I could feel that dratted blush coming back, so I turned away.

"Uhm, about yesterday…" Katalina began. Sigh...why'd you have to bring that up? I looked back over at her. "When I came back with Yukiya."

"Right." I could feel some of that wretched jealousy come back.

"Actually, we had been near the East Forest."

My eyes widened, "The East Forest?" Why? That place is extremely dangerous, even Luca admits it."

"Yeah." she confirmed, "Don't worry, we didn't go inside. We went and stopped at the entrance, following the sound of that song."

I remember her talking about that earlier, last week. "Song? Right, you mentioned something about it before." But nothing about it since, at least in my earshot.

"Yes. Ever since I've come here, I've heard this song every night. I don't understand the words, but it seems that not everyone can hear it. Yukiya can, and that's why he invited me along. He wants to know what it is—he thinks it's coming from the Tower of Sorrow."

Oh great. Now I feel terrible. Why didn't Yukiya just tell me about this? Curse that man for being a man of as few words as possible. "So, did you find anything?" I ask.

"I didn't find anything." she admitted. Then her eyes widened like she remembered something. "Ah, but there was a time when carbuncle had run away. I chased after him, and ended up near the East Forest. Then, I saw Professor Schuyler and the woman I saw when I got the Persona Mirror walking together. I hid and watched them. Then they both went into the East Forest."

"Really?" This is unexpected. "That woman, was she the one you thought to be a ghost?"

Katalina nodded, "She seemed to know Professor Schuyler well. And he seemed to know her, so I'm pretty confident at this point that she's not a ghost."

"But then who is she?" I mused. Oh, I wish Klaus was here. He'd probably know.

"I don't know." Katalina sighed, "But maybe the song, the Tower of Sorrow, and those two are all related, somehow."

"That story, is it true?" We both jumped, and turned to see Professor Merkulova. When the heck did he get there? "I apologize for surprising you. I happened to pass by and couldn't help hearing your story."

"N-no, it's okay."

"Elias?" He looked at me.

"Yes?" I replied.

"Would you mind if I talked to Katalina for a moment?" He asked.

"No, sir. Go ahead." I told him.

"Could you come with me then, Katalina?"

She nodded, getting up. He led her to a nearby hallway. I wondered what he needed her for that I couldn't know about. I quickly, yet discretely, pulled out my wand and cast a spell—one I learned from Klaus, incidentally. I had been frustrated at being left out of the "adult" conversations when I was younger, so he taught me it to allow me to listen in—unlike father, Klaus believed I was mature enough to hear them. I closed my eyes and listened.

"-lova?" I barely caught the end of what Katalina had said.

"Sorry for disturbing you guys." Professor Merkulova apologized, "Could you maybe tell me a little more about that song?" Why would he want to know about it?

"A little more? I can hear it, yes, but I don't know much about it otherwise—other than it seems to be coming from the general area of the Tower of Sorrow." She paused, but then spoke again, "And that Professor Schuyler and that woman went inside the East Forest together."

"I see." he responded, sounding a little worried about something, "This might turn out to be troublesome."

"Huh?" She said. I'd like to know, as well.

"In fact, Professor Schuyler has been behaving strangely for a while."

"Oh?" If he has, I haven't noticed.

"It seems he has been researching various things on the Tower of Sorrow." And just how would you know that? "Professor Schuyler might be trying to uncover the hidden secrets of the Tower together with that woman."

"Secrets?" It _is_ rumored that the Tower contains the greatest some of the greatest treasures and of the kingdom, and the royal family.

"Yes." the professor said, "Both the existence of not only the academy but also the Kingdom of Gedonelune itself might depend on the content of those secrets." Exactly why it's best to _leave them alone._

"There are secrets like that in the Tower?!" Clearly this was news to her. Then again, Katalina did grow up thinking the Tower of Sorrow was a fairy tale.

"Shh…" the professor hushed, "This is very confidential information. It would be bad is anyone found out." Confidential? Like I said, most people _know_ the Tower contains very important and highly guarded 's why it's so well guarded. What motive could he possibly have for lying to her like that?

"Ah, got it…" Katalina whispered.

"Either way, it could be dangerous to let him do as he pleases any longer. So, the two us who know about it should put a stop to what's going on." Hold on! Wait a minute! She's a beginner wizardess, which you know very well, and you're trying to get her involved in something so dangerous?!

"Put a stop to it? But how?" Don't just go along with it, Katalina!

"We need to go to the Tower of Sorrow first, and protect its secrets." That Tower has been the most guarded thing in this country for centuries, is surrounded by generations of layered magical protection, is rumored to be guarded by a dignified magical creature—and you want to go there in the name of "protection?" You jerk! Don't lead her into something like that! "Listen, there is a powerful magic that makes those who enter the East Forest lose their way." No duh! That's why it's best left alone! "But if you can use that song as guidance, you might reach the Tower." And since Katalina can hear that song, you want her to guide you there, is that right?

"Seriously?" Katalina said, surprised.

"Well, at least that's what I read in an ancient book." _Sure_ you did. "It states something about a mysterious song that leads to the Tower of Sorrow. And the song, which gets more complete as the moon waxes, will be complete tomorrow night, the night of the full moon. Only those who have been Fae-gifted, or those with Fae blood, can hear the song. I've heard that you can understand the language of animals?"

"Yes, I can." Katalina confirmed.

"My guess is that somewhere in your ancestry you have a Fae ancestor, or that you were gifted as a baby or young child by a Fae to have that power—that's the only way human's get such a rare talent. So the song you are hearing very well may be the Song of Guidance."

"But, you can't be certain of that, can you?"

"Did you yourself say the song seemed to be coming from the Tower?"

"Well, yeah…" Even though it was actually Yukiya's theory. Wait, does that mean he's got Fae blood or a Fae gift?

"That means the probability is very high. I can protect you from any danger we encounter, okay? So I would like to ask you to come with me to guide the way. You're very important for being able to hear that song."

"Still, there are others besides me who can hear it…" she said hesitantly. I wanted to yell over to her to say no, but then the professor would know of my eavesdropping.

"I can't trust anyone else." The professor sounded sincere, but I could detect a hint of desperation in his tone. "I can confide in a straightforward, honest girl like you and ask you for help." More like trick the naive new girl.

"But, isn't the headmaster on of the Three Mages who guards the Tower? I'm sure it'd be better to report this, wouldn't it?" Yes. Yes it would. It's what he _should_ do, instead of trying to get _Katalina_ to go with him to the Tower itself!

"I can't do that." Oh, and why not?! "The headmaster openly trusts Professor Schuyler. Those two have been friends for a very long time. That's why if I report it, there's a chance Professor Schuyler will hear about it." Excuses! "And so, Katalina, please keep this a secret."

"O-okay." Oi! Don't just agree!

"Good girl." The professor said, sounding pleased. "In that case, let's meet tomorrow night at the entrance to the East Forest. Don't tell anyone, okay? I'll see you then."

Not if I can help it.

He then said goodbye, leaving a Katalina completely unsure of what to do. I stood up and quickly walked over to her, "Hey!"

She jumped, then turned, "Oh, sorry! I kept you waiting."

"Don't get involved in dangerous business."

"Huh?" She looked surprised, and confused.

I held out my hand, and the little leaf in the eaves near where we were standing, which is what I enchanted to extend my hearing capabilities, floating down into my waiting palm. I casted the release spell, and the leaf popped, vanishing elsewhere.

"That spell, is it for hearing sounds from afar?" At least she's not completely clueless. "Did you listen to my talk with Professor Merkulova?" She sounds a little offended.

What I really wanted to say was that I did it because I really cared about her, but what came out was: "I'll say it again. Don't get involved in anything dangerous. It's a bother, as your buddy."

"B-but if someone is trying to expose such a dangerous secret, something has to be done!" she argued. Great time to chose to grow a spine, Katalina. Why now of all times? "Professor Merkulova is a good person! If I can do anything to help—if there's something an amateur person like me can do for the academy…"

Such loyalty to a place she's been in for less than two weeks. I was starting to get a bit frustrated with her stubbornness, particularly since it very well could put her in danger this time. "How good natured can you get? Don't you think it's dangerous?"

"Would you do nothing and let it be, Elias?" she demanded.

"That's right."

"That's terrible!" She exclaims, "Don't you care what happens to the academy?"

I sighed, "Why would it turn out like that? Calm down and think. There's other options to running in blindly."

"How can you stay so cool?" Oh great, now she's frustrated.

"Because I don't just act on every instinct and mess up, like you do." I snapped. Oh no…

"What!?" She looked hurt and angry. So hurt and angry. Crap. What did I do?

"Ugh…" We were now caught in a glaring match. What I said was going too far. I looked away first. "Do what you want!" And don't say I didn't warn you!

"Fine! That's what I'll do!" She shouted. I stomped off, trying to get a reign on my temper. Why do we always fight like this? I hate it! But I'd hate it worse if she got hurt when I could've prevented it. I've got to do something.

* * *

 **Fun Fact 11** : I've had way too much fun with Eli's inner monologue. I mean, I really wish that we could know what Elias was thinking during his route. Hence the reason this story idea was originally born, over a year ago, when Elemental was still a baby story.


	12. Chapter 11 Part 1

TheFallenHer0: Thanks! And I have to say that while I don't quite like how Merkulova ended up, I have to say it makes sense. In a comparison between him and MC, it gives you the different ways people in that situation end up—some people do end up becoming stronger and have a happier ending, but it's unrealistic to think everyone will end up that way, you know? Some people don't end up getting stronger at all, but break and fall to evil, or just to plain unhappiness. Does this make sense? (I always have to ask because sometimes _I_ think I make sense, but no one else thinks I do.)

* * *

Chapter 11, Part 1—To the East Forest

The next morning, the first time I saw her was on the stairs, when she, distracted, bumped into me. She opened her mouth to apologize, but when she saw me, she turned away. She's clearly still mad at me. Fine! Two can play this game. I said nothing and walked away, heading to the prefect's office.

After that, I went to the classroom and set up my notes. She came in only a minute before the bell. We were both still ignoring each other. Why did she have to be so difficult? I mean, I know I wasn't being any better, but still…

I started actually paying attention in Professor Schuyler's class when Luca of all people asked a question.

"...Oh, it's you, Luca. You have a question? How rare?" the professor's voice conveyed that it had better not be a stupid one.

"You're so mean, professor! Treating me like a problematic kid." Luca pouted, not being at all sincere.

"What is your question?" the professor sighed.

"If you need a scale in order to make those time scissor things, does that mean that the Dragon of Time bestowed his scale upon somebody before he turned to stone?" Huh. That was actually a good question. I would've never expected Luca to actually ask something smart.

"Yes, that sounds about right. It was probably before the Dragon of Time was petrified, yes. I am not sure, but I have to say that it was probably before the First King's reign over Gedonelune. However, the creator of the Scissors of Time is unknown." The professor explained.

"Why _was_ the Dragon of Time petrified right after it arrived in Gedonelune?" Are you kidding me, Luca? Did you not hear all the stories as a child?

"That was in order to protect Gedonelune."

"But if that were the case, then isn't it strange that the Three Mages guard the Dragon of Time so fiercely? I mean, if it's protecting the country so well, why does it need it's own protection? Can't it take care of itself?" That was another good question. The concept was a bit paradoxical, if you think about it.

"That is the story that has been passed down, and that is also certainly what is written in the history books." The professor replied.

"Well, it's awfully suspicious. There must have been some reason, right?" Luca continued, "Was the Dragon of Time really the only thing that the Three Mages tried so hard to protect? After all, the Dragon of Time is nothing more than a big rock now, right?" I hate to admit it, but he makes a good point…

"What are you trying to say, Luca?" the professor sighed, "This is a lesson on magical tools. Let's be done with this conversation.

"Why? Shouldn't a teacher be happy to answer a pupil's question?" Okay, now you just sound suspicious, Luca.

"This is your final warning, Luca. Be quiet and sit down."

But Luca didn't stop. "Or, is there something you don't want us to know about?"

"I said, be quiet and _sit down_!" the professor snapped. Oh professor used a primitive spell, creating a powerful gust of wind around the room. Thank goodness I'd been holding down my things. Everyone else was not so lucky.

"Woah…" Now even Luca seemed a little startled.

"Listen, Luca." the professor growled, "If you insist on wasting lesson time with idle talk, I will have to make you write an essay reflecting on your actions. Or perhaps the detention chamber might be better? I can think of a certain person who would not like that on her record because of you." That's a little harsh. Why _is_ the professor being so suspicious about this topic? I can't help but think of what Professor Merkulova said…and who is this person Professor Schuyler mentioned? Does Luca...no, he couldn't possibly have a buddy. It's preposterous.

"All right, all right, I get it…" Luca shrugged his shoulders and sat down, but he didn't sound at all remorseful.

…. …. ….

After classes, I waited outside the classroom for Katalina. "Elias!" There she is.

"Where are you going?" I asked her. "Did you forget about the special training?"

"I promised Professor Merkulova." she said simply.

"You're telling me the truth so easily." And honestly, that made me happy that she trusted me at least that much.

"I don't want to hide anything from you." she admitted, "You're my buddy, after all."

"Is that so?" I replied, "Well then, speaking as your buddy, if I tell you not to go, will you stop trying to?"

"I'm sorry." And I could tell she was, even if she looked like she wasn't going to budge. "This is the one things that you can't change my mind about, no matter what you say." Stubborn girl. Stubborn, stubborn girl.

"You...you have no idea, do you?!" Why was she being so difficult! I was trying to keep her safe, but she was intent on just diving right into the danger! "Ugh! Nothing. I'm done here!" I went to stomp off to the dorm. She can get hurt all she wants for all I care! It's her problem and her fault! I tried to help her and she blatantly refused!

And yet, I still felt like I needed to protect her.

No wonder Klaus immediately went running after Selene when she left.

Gah!

…. …. ….

Yukiya was still wherever he went to during his monthly illness. I never has asked him where he stays when he get sick. It's most certainly not the infirmary.

Thus, I was left to my thoughts, which were getting more guilty by the minute. I had to go help her. So I decided to try and convince her one more time, and if that didn't work, I'd accompany her. Sun knows how awful I'd feel if she got hurt and I could've prevented it.

So I waited outside the girls' dorm for her. It was ridiculously easy to sneak out of the dorms. The patrols were all at the school. The woods and dorms were left alone. Which, honestly, is a huge oversight on the school's part, and puts way too much trust in the hands of teenagers. I mean, it was a simple matter for people to sneak out of the dorms and to the woods. Seriously, what if people, or couples, snuck out to do...uh, not so, um...innocent, uh...things, yeah…?

Authoress: Oh my goshness he's so adorable and blushy and awkward! So cuuuute~!

Selene: Isn't he? XD

Go away! Authoress, stop butting in! Selene, you are currently in a different dimension! Don't start mimicking Authoress! Leave the poor fourth wall alone! You abuse it enough in your own story!

Gosh, they just can't quit, can they?

I first saw her when she lit a small candle lamp. She can't even light the end of her wand to use as a light source, how does she think she can better protect the Tower than it already is?

I reached out and grabbed her arm pulling her to the side. She shrieked, "Who is it?!" Ow...that was _really_ high pitched… "Elias?!"

"I guess it was worth the long wait after all." I said, rubbing my ear with my free hand.

She blinked in surprise, "No way. Have you been waiting this whole time?!"

"Yeah. Since curfew." Well, since a bit after, but, eh, technicalities. Close enough.

"Why did you…"

"As your buddy, if anything were to happen to you it'd be my responsibility. Since I can't seem to sway you, we'll go together so I can keep an eye on you." Why can't I just say it? I like her, like-like her. I don't want her getting hurt. Why can't I just speak what's on my mind? Is there something wrong with my thought-to-speech translator? There must be.

"But why…"

"I said, let's go together." I sighed.

"Elias…" she then smiled at me. Oh gosh, that _smile_ …

"W-what?" I stuttered, "Don't you know it's rude to stare?"

"Thank you."

"I haven't done anything that needs thanking." I replied curtly.

"Even so." That smile is making something in my stomach twist and is making my thoughts drift somewhere they shouldn't be...oh gosh…stupid teenage hormones...just go die or something... "I just wanted to say thank you."

I felt heat rising in my cheeks at her words, and at the sudden turn my thoughts had talked. "You're so weird. Whatever…" I could see her cheeks also turning red, and I forgot why I was here. Oh yeah. "L-let's go. The East Forest, right?"

"Y-yeah." she quickly agreed.

I made sure she stayed behind me as we made our way down to the East Forest. That way, she would be less likely to notice that I was so not cool at the moment. I was trying to clamp down on my blush and force it back, and trying to keep my mind out of the gutter. Dang you thought process! Just reboot or something!

Professor Merkulova was waiting for us, well, for her, when we got there. "Sorry we're late, professor." Katalina apologized.

"Ah, Katalina. I've been waiting for you." Well no duh. He turned around to look at her, only to see me in front of her. His eyes widened in surprise. "Why is Elias with you? I thought I told you to come alone—to not tell anyone?"

"Yes, but Elias is my buddy, and I trust him with all my heart." That sent a thrill through my chest. She trusted me? "So, please, professor. You can trust him, too."

"But…" the professor seemed uneasy.

"Professor Merkulova, I am Katalina's buddy." I said firmly, "As I know that she may encounter something dangerous, I cannot possibly let her do it alone."

The professor was silent for a moment before speaking, "I understand, but you must not tell anyone else about this."

"Yes, we know." How many times have you said that by now?

"Right. Then let's set off. We don't have much time." Then maybe we shouldn't go at all. Maybe we shouldn't put the helpless, adorably naive wizardess in danger. "Katalina, can you hear the song?" the professor asked her.

I glanced back at her. "Hold on." she said, closing her eyes and listening. A moment later she spoke, "I can hear it!" The carbuncle, which was on her shoulder, started humming what I assumed was the song.

"Is it humming along?" The professor seemed confused.

"Yes." she nodded, "It always gets like this when it hears the song."

The professor tilted his head back and forth a few times, thinking about the information, "Right. Katalina, would you mind leading the way?"

"Okay." But I stopped her.

"Let me go first." She looked surprised, but let me keep in front of her. "Professor Merkulova, please cover us from behind. I'll take the front."

"Right." The professor agreed to that a little too quickly, don't you think? Shouldn't he, as the trained, adult wizard, try to take the lead and keep us from getting hurt, particularly since he's the one trying to get us to do this?

"Are you sure that's okay, Katalina? There's some powerful magic at play in this forest. Shouldn't the grown up wizard go first?" I said, thinking, _which is why WE SHOULDN'T BE HERE_. Sigh...you and your thick head are the cause of this. If you'd've just listened to me…

"It's all right. As long as we go in the direction of the song, the magic shouldn't have an effect on us." The professor inserted, "But we must stay on the song's path at all costs."

Katalina nodded, then tilted her head, eyes closed as she listened. Oh gosh...the moonlight shining down on her makes her look so ethereal...get back on track, Elias!

She shivered and flinched as she took a step forward.

"Focus." I whispered, taking her hand and squeezing it gently.

"Elias?" she opened her eyes, which glanced at our hands briefly before looking up at me.

I looked away, feeling heat rise to my cheeks. "This is just for the time being. Don't start getting any ideas." Ah, gosh, I can't just say what I mean, can I? I want to hold her hand. I want to comfort her. I don't want her to be scared.

She was smiling at me. I could feel it. "Let's go ahead."

The East Forest was thick with trees, exactly like the other two forests the surrounded the academy—the North and South—but unlike them, it held a foreboding aura, and the moonlight barely penetrated between the gaps in the leaves. The mist was thick, and it was hard to see more than a few feet in front of us. Everywhere we were seemed the same as the last scene, and Katalina muttered something about how she felt like we were going in circles, and it was really eerie.

"They probably built the Tower of Sorrow in this creepy forest deliberately to stop people from going near it." I agreed. Or maybe that was the enchantments on the forest talking. Who knows, maybe it was once like the North Forest and it's fairy-like quality between the old, thick trees, or the South Forests with it's many clearings and meadows. But it sure as heck wasn't now. The carbuncle, for one, didn't seem to care about any of it. It was still on Katalina's shoulder, humming happily. It was the one thing that convinced me we weren't going in circles. "Must be nice to sit carefree on someone's shoulder."

"I guess so." Katalina's voice trembled slightly, and her hand had a death grip on mine, and had been so for a while now. I didn't mind, seeing as she wasn't all that strong and it didn't hurt, but I knew she was scared. I wished I could do more to comfort her. And if holding my hand made her feel better, she could hold it all she wanted.

It didn't hurt that it made me feel a bit better, too.

"Both of you stop where you are." the professor suddenly commanded.

Katalina looked behind us, "What's the matter?"

He shushed us, "I think I can hear something."

"Huh?" Like Katalina, I didn't hear anything more unusual than normal. "Elias, can you hear something? All I can hear is the song." But then I started hearing something.

"Yeah. I can hear something. It sounds like a beast's heavy breathing." I said with slightly gritted teeth.

"Wha…?!" I clapped a hand over her mouth before she could shriek. Suddenly, there was a growl, followed by a large, black wolf-lion beast that lunged out. I pulled Katalina behind me as she screamed.

"Watch out!" I yanked

"This beast is…" the professor seemed startled.

The, with a pained noise, it collapsed at our feet.

"What just happened? Something's wrong." Something is seriously, deathly wrong.

Katalina yelped, "It's injured." And of course that's what she of all people would care about.

"The wound looks deep." The professor said. The beast, who apparently heard him, struggled to its feet, growling as it swayed. Then it lunged, trying to reach the professor. "Ack! Scutum Ventos!" A shield of wind surrounded him, sending the beast flying. It hit the ground with a thud, and whined pitifully. Katalina gasped—I felt bad for it at this point, too. But it was still dangerous.

"Quick! Use retraining magic!" But the beast was up and lunging before I could raise my wand. I just barely managed to dart to the side, dragging Katalina with me. Those claws had gotten a little too close for comfort.

"It's no use!" The professor cried out.

"Please leave it to me!" Katalina? Why in heck did she sound so confident?!

"It's dangerous!" I snapped at her.

"It's okay." She smiled at me and my will wavered. "Didn't I tell you before? I can speak to animals." She slowly approached it, talking to it softly, "Hey, it's okay. Calm down. We're not going to hurt you." The creature made a half hearted noise. "It's all right." She reached out to touch it, but then it growled and stumbled to it's feet, preparing to pounce.

"Watch out!" I jumped in front of her before I realized what I was doing. I braced myself as it lunged.

"STOP!" Katalina screamed, causing a tremendous blast of wind to blow up around us. Did she just use…?!

Both of us made yelping noises and stumbled. The Beast darted back and ran off whimpering.

Upon regaining my feet, I turned to Katalina, "Just now…"

"Oh my. That Word Spirit Spell was amazing, Katalina!" the professor told her. Just as I thought. She used a Primitive Spell—wild, wandless magic.

And she clearly realize it. "Huh? Did I?"

"Yes! It was incredible!"

"No way…" Katalina still seemed a bit skeptical of the it, even though the professor had told her.

"You might just have more of a talent for Primitive Magic than Incantation Magic, hmm?" the professor mused. "It's just that Word Spirit Spells aren't part of any specific magic group, and they rarely have much attaching power, and they're difficult to control, to boot. But depending on how they're used, they can be more effective than an incantation."

Her eyes widened, "Really?"

"We aren't here to study." I reminded them.

The professor snapped out of teaching mode, "Ah, that's right. We need to hurry." He paused, "But something like what just happened may occur again. Considering the danger we're in"—no duh—"let's cast a protection spell on you both."

"A protective spell?" Like Katalina, I was skeptical. Most protection spells that were long-term took tremendous amounts of energy and skill. And Professor Merkulova wasn't the most powerful wizard.

"Yes. If anything is about to happen, a doppelganger of you will take your place for you. But only once." He explained.

"I didn't know that sort of magic existed." I said questioningly. I was suspicious. Umbra's had to be cast by the specific person. A person could only create there own, and it was a shadow replica at that.

"Well, it is a very specialized form of magic." he replied.

Now that I think of it, I've heard of something vaguely similar about a certain type of foreign magic, shiki-something-or-other, but… "I'm pretty sure I've never heard of it. Is it part of the Meldas system of magic? Or is it…"

"We'll save the details for later." he interrupted, "We need to get going. Let's start with you, Elias." He raised his wand, "Magia Kera!" I don't recognize that language. Maybe it _is_ foreign magic.

A bunch of light particles sprinkled over me, absorbing into my skin. I didn't feel any different. Perhaps this was passive magic? I was only at the level where I could sense active magic—Klaus himself was only able to reach the level of sensing passive magic just recently. It was a lot harder to sense passive than it was active. That was the point.

"This should be enough." the professor nodded, "Okay, Katalina. Magia Kera!" Light made it's way towards her.

But then carbuncle hissed, and the light disappeared. The professor's eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Eh?" That was the carbuncle that did that. Maybe it has a little more magic than I thought.

"It can't be. The spell was rejected?" I don't think Professor Merkulova noticed that the carbuncle had anything to do with it. Should I be worried?

"What?" It seems Katalina didn't realize it either. The carbuncle was pissed, hissing with it's fur raised. She noticed that, "What's wrong, carbuncle? You're acting different that usual."

The professor shook out his wand hand and then raised his wand again, "Well, anyway, let's try that again. Magia Kera!" But again, the carbuncle hissed and the spell evaporated.

"Carbuncle!" Katalina scolded, "What's the matter?"

"Oh dear." The professor sighed, "It looks like we won't be able to cast the protection spell."

"Well, is that's the case, let's carry on without casting the spell. If push comes to shove, I'll protect Katalina myself." I vowed. And I would.

The professor nodded, "All right. It may be wise to continue. I'll also keep an eye on her." Katalina tried to apologize, but he waved it off, "It's not a problem. It's not your fault. Anyway, let's hurry up. Time is short."

* * *

 **Fun Fact 12** : I really hate it when people portray Luca as nothing but a flirty slacker. I mean, he can be at times, but not normally. He likes to tease, yes, and to skip, but a lot of it's just a front. If you guys haven't read Luca's route, I really recommend it. It puts everything Luca does into perspective. He has reasons, some of which Elias realizes in Chapter 12. You also learn a lot about it in Warrior Wizardess, my story for Luca.


	13. Chapter 11 Part 2

TheFallenHer0: I know, right? I think, in the game, it was to protect the gemstone in the Dragon's eye that hold the past of the royal family or something? I've got it set up in these stories to where the purpose of the three mages is to protect the secrets of the royal family, a few certain treasures that are hidden in the Tower. I'll even give you a few of them. One is a book similar to the one Luca's been using of the royal family genealogy. Only, Luca's copy is like a test copy, one where names and pictures have to be manually added, and the one in the tower is far more detailed, giving names by itself and the like. Another is the gem that holds the pasts of the deceased members of the royal family. But only those who are not alive. A third is something I won't tell you exactly what it is, only that the older of the Vanished Princesses hid them there when her sister passed. Also, I love when Elias actually thinks like a kid his age. I mean, he's almost fifteen, he's not going to think as prim and proper as he acts, particularly about the girl he's smitten with. I mean, I've got guy friends his age who moon over their crushes like mad (it's honestly pretty funny). And yes, skeptical Elias is skeptical. Skeptical Elias is very skeptical.

* * *

Chapter 11 Part 2—The Tower of Sorrow

"The song's getting louder." Katalina announced a while later, her hand subconsciously tightening around mine.

"That probably means the Tower of Sorrow is nearby." I replied, doing my best to keep my voice even and refrain from revealing just how much her simple touch is effecting me.

"We're almost there! Almost there!" Was it just me or was Professor Merkulova starting to sound...desperate?

The carbuncle, which had been humming from its perch on Katalina's shoulder—which was almost right by my ear—suddenly went quiet. Katalina looked at it quizzically.

"What's wrong?" I asked her.

"Hm? Oh, nothing!" She shook her head, "Carbuncle just fell asleep, is all."

"Ah." I acknowledge, "Finally tired that nearly endless supply of energy, did it?"

She giggled softly, "Seems so."

"Let's hurry." the professor urged, "There's almost no time. Katalina, please guide us!"

"Okay!" She said, yet again serious.

A few minutes later we came to a clearing, and there was a blue-white tower, bathed in the light of the full moon. The air was cold and tense, and it loomed over us, glaring ominously, as if saying, "You shouldn't be here. Go back to where it's safe. I can take care of myself, thank you!"

Maybe that was just my wishful thinking.

All three of us stared at the tall tower before us. So this was the Tower of Sorrow? It definitely has an accurate name. I could almost feel the sadness radiating from it. It felt like there was something that it contained that would break the heart of any who knew it. But there was also a content feeling underlying that, like sorrow that lead to happiness and peace. It was the strangest contradiction.

"Ah, the song…" Katalina said softly.

The professor looked worried, "What's wrong?"

"The song stopped. I can't hear it any more." She said, brows furrowing slightly.

"The song has…" he muttered, looking up. Then he shook his head, "This doesn't look good. Let's go. I'll lead this time." I didn't see anything wrong, looking up into the sky. I didn't feel anything particularly wrong, either. The professor headed towards the tower, and went inside.

I tugged lightly on her hand, "Katalina, let's go." We don't want to fall too far behind the professor.

"Okay." her voice was still quiet. I looked over at her. She was completely frozen, and I saw fear in her eyes. Of course. She was frightened.

"It's okay." I told her, doing my best to sound comforting and sure, "Whatever happened, I'll protect you." I repeated my vow from earlier. I won't let her get hurt. I refuse to let that happen.

She looked up at me, relief in her eyes, "Elias…" She nodded at me gratefully, a small smile on her lips.

I quickly nodded at her, then led her in the tower, making sure she was behind me. Right inside the tower was a spiral staircase that led upward as far as the eye could see. I started to wonder is there was some sort of magic going on here that made the inside of the tower larger than it appeared on the outside.

"Wow. I feel dizzy just looking at it." Katalina whispered.

"It looks like it goes on for a while, doesn't it? Stay close."

"Okay! I'm confident that I have the energy to climb these stairs!" She's trying to convince her herself of it, I can tell. I hope she does, because stair climbing, with this many, is going to be exhausting.

I withhold a smile, and can't help but tease her a bit, "That's for sure. If it's just energy you're worried about then you seem to have more than enough of that."

"Hey!" she pouts indignantly, "It is just me who is thinking you're insulting me again?"

"It's just you." I sighed. Tease, not insult. I look over at her, "I'll try my best to go at your pace."

"Huh? Oh. Right. Okay!" She nods, smiling at me. Oh gosh...if she keeps doing that my knees won't let me make it to the top. Then she frowns slightly, "But where is Professor Merkulova?"

"Ah." I realize something, "He's quite a ways ahead of us." I looked over at her, and decided to tell her something of the suspicious feeling that's been growing in the pit of my stomach for a while, "Doesn't it feel like the professor's been in a hurry since we got to the tower?"

She contemplates it a second before answering, "Yeah. He said all along that there's not much time, but…"

"What does he mean, in the first place, when he says 'there's not much time'?"

"Maybe he thinks Professor Schuyler is going to come chasing after us?" She suggests.

"Do you really think so?"

"I don't know." she admits.

"What? Didn't you ask Professor Merkulova beforehand?!"

"N-no…" and there's the stutter. Geez.

"Really, people like you," I mumble, mostly to myself, "Do you only act on your feelings?"

"I-I'm sorry…"

I sigh, "Whatever. Let's hurry and catch up to him before we get let too far behind." We both start climbing the stairs, keeping a steady pace for a while. But after six or so minutes, Katalina is panting with effort.

"Everything looks the same no matter how far up we go…" she groans.

"Yeah." I reply, a bit tired myself, "I can't even tell if we're actually going up anymore."

She suddenly sounds scared, "There's no way that this stair is enchanted, is there? I mean, how long are we going to have to climb this thing for?" I was about to reply that I couldn't sense any magic on the stairs, but the moment she'd finished speaking, there was a loud cry.

"Was that the professor just now!" she yelps.

"Quick!" I start running up the stairs, "Let's go!" We reach an end—finally—a large room that could not normally fit in the confines of the tower, and I look around. "Professor Merkulova?!" My eyes catch on something and I freeze.

"Are you all right?! Where are you?!" Katalina calls, then notices what's frozen me. "No way...what is that?!"

"It's a chimera!" I gasp.

"A chimera?" How in heck does she not know what those are?!

"For goodness sake!" I snap at her, "What have you been studying?!"

"Chimera." says a new voice, "A chimera is a dignified magical creature that is said to possess the head of a lion, the body of a mountain goat, and a snake as a tail."

"What was that?" I ask, even thought I think I already know the answer.

"Oh, er…"

"It's me!" And that would be Grim peeking out from her bag. Why in the world did she bring the grimoire?!

"What?! You still haven't returned it?!" I checked that out! If it's late I'm the one who gets in trouble!

"I returned it, then borrowed it again." She explains sheepishly.

"You do the strangest things, don't you?"

"Weird things?!" Grim cried out, "What do you mean 'weird things'?!"

The chimera yowled and we all snapped back to the importance of the situation. "Hold on!" she scolded Grim, and, partly, me. "Now isn't the time to argue!"

I watched as the professor threw a fireball at the beast. But the moment the fire hit it, the flames completely dissipated.

What?!" Katalina exclaimed, "It had no effect?!"

"What is this thing…?!" I was starting to panic on the inside. If a _teacher_ couldn't do anything to stop it, what luck did we have?

"I'm going to try and talk to it!" Katalina declared. Wait, what?

"Don't be an idiot! What are you thinking?!" I was nearly yelling at her, "A chimera is far different from a normal animal! It's a beast that exists solely for combat!"

"But we can't just go on like this!" she shouted back. Uh-oh. It seems the chimera heard us, because it just turned it's head in our direction.

"Opps…" Grim winced. Opps is right. "This doesn't look good." He disappeared into her bag again.

"Huh?!" Katalina glared at her bag, "Wait a second, Grim! Help me out here!"

I pulled her behind me as the beast yowled again, "Get down!" I raised my wand, "O sacred light, become a piercing arrow! Sangitta Lumen!" I waved my wand. Nothing happened. Absolutely nothing. "Wha—!"

"What the...what's wrong?!" Katalina seemed baffled. I felt baffled. Why didn't it work?! Sure, I'm a bit panicked, but not the point where I'm too scared to work magic! "Why isn't it working!" I cried. "O sacred light, become a piercing arrow! Sangitta Lumen!"

It didn't work. Again. "What's going on?!" Katalina sounded worried.

"What does this...does this mean we can't use magic?!"

"W-what?!"

The beast growled. "There's no time! Katalina! Use your primitive spell!"

"I, ah…" she hesitated, then tensed up in determination, "STAY AWAY!" A gust of wind surrounded her, but it wasn't as strong as it had been back in the forest. "Why?" she exclaimed, "It's not working at all!"

I froze as the thing tensed for a moment before charging. Straight at me. It's eyes bore into me and I was frozen, hundreds of thoughts streaming through my mind at the same time. So this is what the paralysis predators cause feels like.

I vaguely heard Katalina scream my name. I blinked and snapped out of the trance as she came in front of me, blocking the eyes of the beast from my own, "Katalina?" She fell forward and I lurched forward to catch her. We both tumbled to the ground. Her bag went flying, the contents scattering. Katalina whimpered and I groaned. Ow. I had fallen on top of her, and when that thought registered, I shifted off of her. My eyes widened, "Katalina?!" She looked like she was about to pass out. And was covered in red. A red that was all over my front, as well.

"I'm glad...you're okay...Elias…" she mumbled. She glanced down at her blood-covered hand. Her eyes widened.

"Hey! What happened?!" I felt ropes of panic wind around my chest, squeezing tighter with each passing moment. What do I do? She's bleeding...oh, there's so much blood…

"I'm fine." she insists weakly, "It's just a scratch…"

"It doesn't look like 'just a scratch'!"

"No, really, I'm okay…"

"You're always don't this, acting like like everything's okay all the time!"

"Elias…"

"I'm sorry!" I choked back a sudden sob, "It's my fault! It's my fault that you…!"

She looks me dead in the eyes in a moment of lucidity, "No. It's not your fault, Elias."

I shook my head, trying to clear it, "Anyway, I'll cast and emergency healing spell for you!" I then called over to the professor, seeing as my stupid magic went kaput. "Professor! Professor Merkulova! Katalina is…!" But something about him look different. His expression was blank.

"Elias."

"Professor?" What happened to him? I followed his gaze to where he was staring at Katalina's scattered things, specifically...the Persona Mirror.

"Why do you have this?" the professor said. The Mirror started to glow, meaning he was being reflected. It began speaking in his voice.

" _Everything has gone according to plan. Katalina could hear the song and was able to guide me to the Tower of Sorrow. She's such a good kid. So pure and innocent...so easy to trick._ " I stiffened. I had suspicions. And for once, I hate to admit I was right. But the Mirror wasn't done yet. " _Well, someone uninvited also tagged along, but...even so. It's just as I was told. The song really does lead here. And once we actually entered the Tower, my plan was practically complete. I had already sealed the magic of that nuisance, Elias. I'm a bit sorry to do this to the two of them, good kids, really, but they're going to have to fight the chimera._ "

I felt a cold wave of terror—I was far beyond fear and panic at this point. "No, it can't be...Professor, you...?!" He was just going to leave us? Leave Katalina, who was really hurt? I would kill him right now if I could!

"No…" Katalina's voice was getting weaker.

"Tck! This mirror, it's…!" The professor's face twisted terribly and he tried to stomp on the Mirror. But his foot could get more than a foot close to it. It was a valuable magic tool—did the idiot professor think it wouldn't be covered in protective spells? "Arg...well, never mind. I need to get going anyway." He looked over at us. With his expression, I could hardly believe he was the same person, the professor that everyone liked so much. "Everything will be mine. Goodbye, Elias, Katalina, and good luck. You'll need it." He rushes up the continuation of the spiral stairs that are on the opposite side of the room.

"No…" Katalina whimpers, "It can't be…"

I was completely panicked now, "So that's what it was! That 'protective spell' he cast on us before—it wasn't a 'protection spell', it was a spell that seals off our magical power!" And now it might cost the life of the girl I love. I love Katalina. I have to try and save her. I have to try! I brandish my wand, "Sanatio Aura!" Nothing. "Sanatio Aura!" Nothing! "Sanatio Aura! Sanatio Aura!" Why?! Why is it the one time I actually genuinely need magic for something of actual importance, it fails me! "Urk! I can't even use the stupid recovery spell!" I supported her in my arms, "Katalina! Stay with me!" She looked like she'd fall unconscious soon.

"Was I…" she muttered, a tear slipping out of the corner of her eye. I leaned in closer to hear her. "Was I just used by the professor?"

"Calm down, Katalina." I said, trying to calm myself. My rational mind knew that panicking wouldn't help. "Don't try to speak. It'll make it worse!"

"Professor Merkulova...I didn't know he was that sorta person…" She laughed, and it was painfully pathetic to watch, "I'm such an idiot. I should have...listened to you, Elias…" Her voice was getting weaker.

The chimera growled. "Watch out!" I scooped her up and got out of the way of the charging monster. I slipped from the uneven weight and we tumbled to the floor, rolling over each other. I heard Katalina cry out in pain. "Katalina!" I made sure my weight wasn't on her. "Dammit! We can't carry on like this much longer!" A random ball of glowing light appeared in front of us. "This is…" And, completely out of expectation, the carbuncle appeared with a pop.

"Carbuncle…?" Katalina was confused, "When did you…?" But the little fluffball ignored her and rose into the air, it's eyes opening wide. It began to sing. "Huh?" Katalina's eyes widened slightly.

"I can hear it...is this the song you were talking about?" I'm trying so hard to keep the scared quiver out of my voice. She's hurt. Katalina's hurt and I can't do a single thing about it!

I heard the chimera make a confused noise, and looked up to see it staggering unsteadily on it's feet. Was it because of the song? "The chimera's acting weird!" I told her. Then, the chimera fell to the floor in a cloud of dust, thudding loudly. "What the?!"

"What...just happened?" Katalina's voice was even softer now.

"It's asleep!" I exclaimed. The carbuncle squee'd, and I looked at it, "Did you put it to sleep?" It squee'd again.

"That's incredible...carbuncle, you...have such power…" Her voice was even weaker than before.

"Katalina!" I cried.

"This is bad! This is bad!" Grim fluttered about, clearly expressing his panic.

I pulled her into my arms, holding her as if it would save her. As if I could only hold onto her life and not let go, like I could keep it shining. But reality was hacking at that hope with a battle ax, because the warm blood was burning itself into my skin wherever it made contact. Some sentient thoughts made their way to the forefront, "We have to stop the bleeding! Sanatio Aura!" I waved my wand over her. "Sanatio Aura! Sanatio AURA!" I was shouting it now, madly, pleading for it to work with ounces of my soul that, up until this point, I hadn't known existed. "SANATIO AURA!" I gritted my teeth, feeling tears start to form in my eyes, "Why can't I do anything at a time like this?! Please! Please, somebody help us!" Her eyes were shut, only barely fluttering. I felt the first tear slip out of the corner of my eye. "Isn't there anything I can do?! I don't want to lose you! If I can't use magic when I need it the most, then what use is it? What the hell is it good for?!" I cradled her closer. She barely responded. "Open your eyes! Katalina, open your eyes! I don't need anything else, I don't want anything else, but I don't want to lose you! I haven't even told you yet! I...you...I haven't said anything yet!" Tears were freely pouring down my face, dripping down onto hers. "Katalina! Katalina, please!" I choked and couldn't say anything more, couldn't do anything but let the tears continue.

"...Sanatio Aura." I heard the faintest sound escape her lips in a shallow breath, but I couldn't hear what she said. But she grew heavier in my arms. No...no, no no no NO!

Then a blue and white light wrapped itself around her, and I heard the carbuncle make a low, prolonged humming sound. There was a warm, gentle breeze that surrounded the two of us and the carbuncle. Before my eyes, the scratches on her started to close and fade. "Carbuncle?" Her eyes fluttered open slightly, and she looked at the carbuncle, which was sitting on my shoulder, glowing. Even the blood, which had been everywhere, was slowly fading into nothing. "Is this...the healing magic of the wind?"

"Katalina…" I whispered.

She looked up at me, "Elias...I…"

"You...you tried to cast a recovery spell on me, didn't you? It was a terrible healing spell, but carbuncle reflected it, and it healed your wounds." I felt a sort of blissful emptiness start to sweep away what had been total painful panic a moment ago. She's okay...Katalina's okay. I got up and helped her to her feet.

"Does that mean I'm all better now? Well then…" she breaks into a grin, "I did it, didn't I? I performed a magic spell!" I stared at her, unsure of what to do. First she was dying and now she's smiling that entirely hypnotizing smile. She took ahold of my hand and danced a bit in place. "Maybe I really can use magic when I actually need to! Did you see it, Elias, did you see it?!"

Then it hit me. I'd practically confessed my undying love to her less than two minutes ago. I felt my face instantly flush and I looked to the side, "Wha...? You're such an idiot!" Oh gosh...I still have tear stains on my face, don't I? And I can't wipe them away without making it way to obvious that they're there! So, as I usually did to hide my embarrassment, I scolded her, "Why did you try to protect me?!"

"Why?" She sounded like it haven't even occurred to her. Idiot. Sweet, beautiful idiot. "Because…" I heard her footsteps, and then she was suddenly in front of my face.

I jumped, "W-what?!"

"Because I like you."

My mind went blank. "What?!" No, she, no...really? Oh gosh...what do I do? What do I do?! I'm panicking here! Authoress, you're always butting in! Help me!

Authoress: No! You always reject me when I comment! You can fend for yourself, you awkward taco!

What in the heck is an awkward taco?! Gah! Nevermind! She's no help!

I swear, when Katalina said that my face became ten times redder...and I'm not even sure how possible that occurrence is!

Then her eyes widened, like what she said had registered in her own head. "W-well...I mean…I mean I like you as a fellow! Like, um, like..." she laughed awkwardly. As a fellow? What in heck was that supposed to translate to? Why do some people, girls in particular, need a translator to be understood? They're supposedly speaking the same language, but I am really doubting that at this point.

What should I do? Should I tell her my feelings? Is this the right time? I always thought it be extremely different, with flowers and a walk and all that sort of stuff, but… "Katalina." Aw, to heck with it.

I wrapped my arms around her and hugged her tightly. "Really, I've never met someone as weird as you. Excepting Selene, of course." She giggled a bit and hugged me back. I'll think about all the over-thinking later. Right now, I'm just glad she's okay. And heck, her heart's beating as loudly as mine is. We're equals in this moment, holding each other, relieved the other isn't hurt.

I heard someone—or some _thing_ , to be precise—chuckle, "Well, isn't this a lovely sight to behold." Carbuncle gave a happy squee.

"I-it's nothing!" I hastily let go of her as the crimson coloring returned to my face. Dang you Grim! You ruined it!

"Y-yes! It's nothing at all!" Katalina seconded, nearly as red-faced as I was as she looked at her feet.

A few moments of awkward silence later…

"By the way," Grim began, "is it really fine to let that professor go?!"

Katalina and I jerked simultaneously. "Y-yeah! Professor Merkulova!" she exclaimed. I'd forgotten about him. Opps.

I felt my teeth grit, "We can't let him get away like this." He was going to pay for hurting Katalina. "He'll said he'll take everything he wants."

"I'm still having trouble believing it. All this time, it was Professor Merkulova who was after the Tower's secret, not Professor Schuyler." Katalina was downtrodden, shoulder's slumped.

"That was probably his plan all along. That's why he used you, Katalina. It's not your fault—you've got a good heart. You just wanted to help. And it's not too late to do just that."

She looked up at me, gratitude in her eyes, "We have to stop him."

I met her gaze, "Yes." We both nodded at each other, determined. "Let's go."

"Come on!" We both hurried to the stairs, running up them as fast as we could.

…. …. ….

"Are we...not there...yet...?" Katalina gasped between pants.

"Just a bit further." I told her. I could see what appeared to be the end of the staircase.

Carbuncle made an odd squee sound. "Carbuncle, what's wrong?" Katalina asked it. The creature looked up the stairs, then back at her, then up the stairs again. The two of us followed its gaze. There was a white carbuncle hopping down the staircase.

"Wh-what the..?" Katalina was confused. Again.

"It's another carbuncle. A normal white one." I said, a bit confused myself. And then there were none.

I wish.

Down the stairs came over a hundred white carbuncles. "W-what is this?!" I don't know, Katalina. I'm as baffled as you are.

There it is! "Katalina, look! We're at the top!" We had reached the end of those blasted stairs. Professor Merkulova stood in front of a large door, and more and more of the white carbuncles were appearing from sun knows where.

"Professor Merkulova!" Katalina shouted. The professor jumped and whirled around to face us.

"Katalina! Elias!" He yelped, "I didn't think you'd catch up so quickly…"

"What on earth are you planning?!" I yelled at him.

The professor smirked, "Don't you know? On the other side of that door lies the Dragon of Time. Whoever sets the Dragon of Time free from its stone will gain incredible power!"

"Incredible power?" Uh, didn't he know that Dragons aren't like faeries, and can't give power or magical gifts to others?

"That's the Tower's secret?" Katalina said.

"How's that? Isn't it amazing?" The professor smile was disturbed, twisted, "I've been falling short my whole life, but with this I can become the creator of a whole new world! I personally will announce the end of Gedonelune as we know it, and become Loran Merkulova, Great Mage and King of the new kingdom!" He laughed, sounding like an evil genius. Really? That was kind of cliche. Even so, it was creepy as heck. "Can you even imagine something so beautiful?" I think that beauty is only in your eye, creep.

"Professor…" Katalina sounded like she pitied him. I suppose that _was_ justified, seeing as it was his weakness that drove him to desire power. I had the same insecurity—the feeling of never being good enough. Never matching up to everyone else. But, I realized, it wasn't there so much anymore. Katalina had proven to me that I shouldn't feel that way. What I wanted to feel was worthy of her admiration. That's what mattered to me now.

"But," the professor continued, "you came in the nick of time, Katalina."

"What?"

"You see, I can't get past this door, so I'm at a standstill. Take a look. The door reads: ' _I will only open to those of royal blood, those of fae blood, or for those who the fae have deemed worthy to gift with power. Those not royal must sing the song of the fae to enter into this chamber_.'"

"What does that have to do with me?" Katalina's brow furrowed in confusion, "I'm no royal. And what's that mean, of fae blood or fae gifted?"

"It's that song...you can hear it, but none of us can. Only those of fae blood, a halfling born between a human and a fairy, or those whom the fae give special gifts to can hear it. You're human, but at some point, a fairy deemed you worthy to gift with magic. Could any of your family members use magic?"

"N-no…"

"Then why can you, hmm? Because a fairy gave you magic, most likely, when you were two young to remember. It's why you can talk to and understand animals. That's fae magic. You can open the door, Katalina. That's where you come in. If you sing the guiding song, it'll open!"

Katalina's hand gripped mine tighter. I don't even remember when she grabbed it. I squeezed it back. "No way!" she shouted, "I'm not singing anything for you!"

The professor's smile drooped, but then returned, even more maniacal than before, "I told you to sing! Funus Capis!" A rope made of light streamed out from his wand and wrapped itself around Katalina, lifting her up, pulling her hand from mine. She screamed.

"Katalina!" I cried. She was too high up. I couldn't reach her.

"Sing!" The professor cried, "Sing the song!"

I automatically whipped out my wand, "Merkulova! Stop it! Acies Ventos!" Nothing happened. Crap! I'd forgotten my magic was sealed! "Dammit! I still can't do anything!"

Katalina screamed my name.

"No. There is something I can do! I'll protect you!" I called to her. I jammed my wand into my pocket and started to run, full speed. I put my arm back as I neared the professor, then jerked it forward in a powerful motion. The palm of my hand collided with the side of his nose. I felt cartilage sickeningly squish beneath my hand. It was broken, that's for sure. Ugh...that felt disgusting. The professor fell like a brick. He was out like lit a torch thrown into a lake.

"Well done, well done!" Grim piped up. So he's back.

"Elias?!" Katalina yelled, "The ropes are fade….ahhhh!"

"Katalina!" I sprinted, even fast than before, to catch her. I made it in time. I caught her in my arms and stumbled backwards a bit before regaining my footing. She was heavier than she looked.

Her eyes had been screwed shut, but when she opened them I smiled at her. Oh gosh...she's okay…

"Elias…" her eyes were wide as she looked up at me.

"Made it in time." The relief was evident in my sigh. My eyes were caught with hers. She had such wonderful eyes. I don't think I've ever seen eyes that are as rich a brown as hers are. My mother and oldest brother had brown eyes, but they were faded in comparison with Katalina's. Her pure, almost liquid brown eyes.

"Being young is so nice…" Grim sighed. Gah...! I hurriedly put Katalina down. What was I doing?

"I'm glad you're okay…" I said, all awkward.

"Y-yeah...thanks for that…"

Authoress: Aw! You're so adorable when you're awkward, Eli!

Ugh. She's back again. Where were you earlier, when I actually needed you?

Authoress: Hey! It wasn't easy writing that little fight scene! I was at lunch! I had to ask a few of my friends how they'd describe hitting someone like that. ...Mostly because a couple of them had before. Not randomly, there were good reasons, but I still was milking them for information! Action scenes are hard for me! I'm a dialogue person!

Whatever. Go back to writing the story! This chapter is almost over! And you've got homework!

Authoress: Meanie! See if I leave the last bit of this until tomorrow!

I watched as Katalina's eyes lit upon something by her feet. "Elias, this is…"

"...Professor Merkulova's wand." I finished. I took a step forward and lifted my foot up. Then I slammed it down, snapping, crushing the wand. A blue light surrounded my person. I clenched and unclenched my fists, feeling suppressed power running through them. My magic was haywire, probably because it wanted to be used. "It definitely feels like my magical power came back."

"Ah, I'm glad." She smiled at me.

I smirked, "Yeah. Just in time. Let's test it." I pulled out my wand and turned towards the unconscious professor. "Funus Captis!" Ropes of light flowed out of the end of my wand and encircled around the man, tightening and lifting him into the air. I waved my wand and directed the bundle to a nearby pillar, and caused it to stick there with magic. "We should be all right leaving him there. Let's report it to the headmaster."

"Sure." she agreed. She paused, then said something else. "But the professor, was he really so power hungry? I mean, you said that once, didn't you? That magic equals power?"

"Yeah, well, that is what I thought. But I never thought of it as controlling power. But let me revise what I've said: Magic alone is not power." I amended.

"Then what does magic mean to you, Elias?"

"To me, magic is…" but I was cut off by carbuncle, who had started to sing. It was joined by all the other, white carbuncles. It sent a powerful wave of magical energy through the air.

"W-what is this?!" Katalina yelped, stumbling under the sudden force. The room was vibrating!

"Agh...my ears feel like they're going to fall off!" I clamped my hands around my ears, and she did the same. Then, a moment later, the music stopped. But then the ground began to shake.

"What is it this time?!"

"Look!" I gasped.

"The door! It opened!" Indeed, the large door into the inner- and upper-most room of the Tower of Sorrow had opened of it's own—or of the magic's—accord.

* * *

 **Fun Fact 13** : Okay, as we all know, after all this is over, Professor Merkulova is no longer a professor. I had originally planned to have Klaus replace him for that last semester of the year. But then I realized that he's still in school. He'll be the teacher the next year, seeing as he graduates after the next semester. I'll be having an OC replace Merkulova for that last semester. She's not key in Elemental, really, but she'll be important in Vincent's side story (it takes place in the Spiral universe, but it mostly takes place before he's at the academy for the King of Fairies arc).


	14. Chapter 11 Part 3

TheFallenHer0: I have to say I love coming up with those smaller details that make lots of sense for a story. They're my favorite thing to do for stories, right along with putting together character guides/bios. And the way of describing the tower was, in fact, some subtle foreshadowing. I'll let you wonder as to how. ;) I'm glad I correctly conveyed the panic Elias was feeling, the absolute terror of losing the person he loved and feeling helpless to stop it. And I agree, I love the moment where Elias realizes that he doesn't always need magic to be able to do something. I'll give you a hint at how it's changed: Luca has nothing to do with it. In fact, at this point in time, he's probably with Marelda doing something or another. I haven't actually gotten to that point in his story. And to answer your question, yes. All the current character's are technically in Vincent's story (which is another one I have to start soon crap I just remembered that!), eventually. A large chunk of the beginning of his story takes place before he goes undercover with Miwa at the academy, though. But they'll be there eventually.

* * *

Chapter 11 Part 3—Carbuncle's Secret

"The door!" Katalina exclaimed, "It opened?!"

As the dust cleared, something was visible in the room. "This place…" It was a large room, filled with tall, floor-to-ceiling windows—no, those were open holes that lead straight outside—that allowed bright beams of moonlight to illuminate it. In the center of the room stood a large stone statue. The moon beams caused something in the face of the dragon to glitter red.

"So this, it's the Dragon of Time, I guess?" Katalina said in awe.

"Looks like it…" I was as awestruck as she was. We both moved towards the room, as if by some large, unseen force.

"This is incredible…" Katalina whispered. I had to agree. With the way the light was, the statue looked like it could move at any second.

"It still makes such a powerful impression that I'm having trouble believing it's just stone."

"Yeah." she agreed, "It's like it could move, even now." We both just gazed at it, still and silent, for a while.

"They said the country's greatest treasures could be found here." I said, softly, because it would feel disrespectful to be loud. "But they're not. Were they just rumors?"

"I don't…know…" Katalina said absently. I started. When did she get to be in front of me like that? She looked almost…hypnotized. She was walking towards the Dragon, her hand outstretched.

"Katalina?!"

Right before her hand touched the Dragon, a powerful gust of wind so strong it knocked me back ripped through the room. Katalina shrieked and fell, the wind pushing her backwards. I heard her wand clatter against the floor. When she stopped, she was perched at the edge of the window hole. Carbuncle landed on her trying to pull her towards the center of the room. "KYAAAA!"

"KATALINA!" I yelled as she fell backwards out of the window. I started running at a speed that put my fastness earlier to shame.

"No! Elias! Don't!"

I dove out of the window without a second thought. I accidentally dropped my wand as I reached for her hand. "Katalina!" I grabbed her and pulled her to me, as if I could save her from this by giving up myself.

"Elias, why did you?!" I heard her gasp.

"We're buddies, aren't we?" Because I love you.

"Neither of us have our wands! We can't stop falling!"

"I know…" And I was an idiot for letting go of mine.

"What are we going to do?!"

We had fallen to half way at this point. I felt her grip onto my shirt, burying her face in my chest. I tightened my arms around her.

Then the carbuncle squealed loudly. Then there was a pop sound. Followed by another.

"Huh?" Katalina looked up. There were white carbuncles popping up all over the place, surrounding us. Our falling slowed.

"W-what the crap?!" I couldn't believe what I was seeing…

"The carbuncles! They're saving us!"

We slowly floated down towards the ground. Then, when we were a good two feet from it, the pink carbuncle cried out and all the white ones simultaneously disappeared. Katalina and I hit the ground with a yelp.

"Owowow…" Katalina whimpered.

I grunted, rubbing my tail bone. "Ngh! Couldn't they have let us down more gently?" I stood up, pulling her up with me.

"Anyway," she said, "Did you hear it? The whispering? I could hear a woman crying…and a man's voice."

I shook my head as I helped her up, "I heard nothing but the wind.

"It seems we made a little late."

Katalia gasped, "That...!"

"Professor Schuyler?!" I exclaimed as we both turned in his direction. He was followed by a pretty woman with very bright red—red, not orange-red—hair. She was wearing what seemed to be a version of the female battle-mage uniform.

"Ah! It's you!" Katalina gasped again. That's who now? Wait…

"No way…is she that ghost?"

"My, how rude." She chuckled, "I'm no ghost."

"W-what on earth are y-you doing h-here?" Katalina stuttered. I'd like to know, too.

"This is top secret." Professor Schuyler said seriously, "We usually wouldn't tell anyone, but you two are already very much involved. You must not speak of what I'm going to tell you to anyone."

"Y-yes sir…" Katalina said, now frighten. Oh so the freakin' _chimera_ doesn't scare her, but he does?! How messed up is that?!

"Of course." I'm half lying. I'm probably going to be made to tell Klaus at some point. He still is able to force answers out of me.

"Of course, Elias, your older brother does, in fact, know this." The woman giggled, "So don't worry about that."

I gulped. How did she…?

"We are two of the Three Mages guarding the Tower of Sorrow." Professor Schuyler announced.

"What?!" I'd like a further explanation, too, Katalina.

"I am the successor of the First Mage." the professor continued, ignoring Katalina's cry.

"I'm the Third Mage." The woman added.

I was still having trouble believing what I was hearing. Heck, I'm still having trouble believing anything that happened tonight is real! What is reality, anyway? "You guys are part of the Three Mages?"

"We've kept watch over the Tower of Sorrow to protect on of the royal families hidden treasures, the gem called the Dragon-Eye." the professor explained, "Now, if you'll excuse me, I am going to go put the Tower back in order and put the perpetrator under arrest."

He left. The suddenly, carbuncle squee'd and hopped over to the woman.

She smiled, "Welcome back." It nuzzled her face as she looked at us, "Has he been useful?" she saw our confused faces and laughed a bit. "Carbuncles are my familiars." She held out her hand, palm up, and a few popping sounds made as carbuncles, white ones, started to jump from her hand onto the ground.

"Wow! That's amazing!" Katalina said.

"Most people believe that carbuncles are magical creatures, solely so. This is not true. They are half-fae, meaning they are smarter than they seem. They are the ones who create the fae-song that is the key to the Tower. When you went to the headmaster's office to collect the mirror, this carbuncle was inside, wasn't it? This carbuncle"—she gestured to the pink one—"has a special power different to the others. He's particularly clever. I've told him to come back many times, but it seems he's taken a liking to you. You seem to have a natural disposition for being loved by animals and magical creatures, don't you?"

"I-I guess so…"

The woman smiled again, "But I'm glad that it seems he's been of use to you, in the end." She winked at Katalina.

Katalina nodded, "Yes, he's helped us so much." I had to fight back a laugh when the carbuncle squee'd and puffed out his chest, looking mighty pleased with himself.

"But," the woman added, "it would appear the case is closed. Professor Merkulova, hmm? Poor man. He was so lost in his lust for power that he didn't realize how lucky he was."

Katalina nodded, as did I. Then I sighed, "And I'm probably going to have to be the one to tell Selene when she gets back. She'll throw a dramatic fit, like she does for most everything." The woman laughed as I continued. "But, at least I'll have a wonderful buddy to distract her. She's going to coo over you like there's no tomorrow, Katalina. I'm seriously warning you." I elbowed her gently and she wrinkled her nose, sticking out her tongue. Then we both smiled.

"Ah yes, that's right. Katalina?" My buddy looked over at the woman, who had addressed her. "Do you remember what I said the last time we met? I told you that should you still not know who I am the next time we meet, I would eat you head first, don't you remember?" Was it just me, or were the woman's eyes sparkling as she teased Katalina?

"O-oh yeah…"

"I'll ask you one more time. Do you know who I am?"

"Um…" she looked like she was thinking, then her eyes widened, "That's right!" She took of her bag and dug through it. How that thing was still intact and on her back at this point was astounding. She pulled out the pouch that contained the Persona Mirror, removing it.

Huh. "Good idea. You used your head this time." I smiled at her, and she returned it.

She pointed the mirror in the direction of the woman, "Show me her true form!"

I watched at the mirror rippled and showed… "No...it can't be…"

"No way!" Katalina said.

"Headmaster Randolph?!" We gasped simultaneously. At that moment, the first rays of dawn began to creep over the horizon—wait. It was already that late? Or, well, early?!

A ray of light hit the woman, and in a dull flash of light, the woman transformed into the headmaster. He smiled at us, "Using the Person Mirror was pretty clever of you, Katalina."

"H-headmaster R-randolf! W-was that re-really you just n-now?!"

He nodded, still smiling, "This is my daytime form. I have lived most of my long life with both a daytime and nighttime form."

A few things clicked. "I see." I mused, "That's why it wasn't a serious matter for you when she took the Mirror."

"Yes, indeed. It was me who lent it to her."

"And that's why the chest that the Mirror was in wasn't locked." Katalina said.

"It was all part of the package." He winked at her. "The successor of the First Mage is Conrad Schuyler. He's been in that position for just under two decades. The third mage is my nighttime self. My daytime self is the Second Mage. The role of the First Mage of the Three Mages had been passed down for generations amongst the great mages in accordance with the First King's orders. We are the Three Mages who continue to guard the Tower of Sorrow."

"I see." I nod.

"We should've known from the beginning what was transpiring and dealt with it much earlier." Katalina and I jump as Professor Schuyler speaks. He's back.

"We let you both fall into grave danger. We are extremely sorry." The headmaster said.

"N-not at all! We're perfectly fine!" Katalina insisted.

"Yes. We were the ones who decided to get involved without consulting anybody." I agreed with her.

"It was certainly rash." the professor sighed, "If it were only Katalina, but you, too, Elias…"

"But even so, you two protected the Dragon-Eye very well." the headmaster said. "And you even risked your lives to do so. A secret treasure of Gedonelune's royal family is now again safe."

"I'm so glad…" Katalina sounded relieved.

"Ah, that's right. We can't forget to thank you both now, can we?" The headmaster said.

"Huh?"

"As it does seem that somehow or other you, Katalina, are of a disposition that makes you naturally adored by animals and magical creatures. Come hear, carbuncle." The pink fluffball hopped over into the headmaster's palm. "I shall give you this familiar."

Her eyes widened, "R-really? Is that really okay?"

"Yes, yes." the headmaster chuckled, "He seems to have taken a liking to you. Also, feel free to give him a name." The carbuncle gave an excited cry, confirming what the headmaster had said, and jumped onto Katalina's shoulder, snuggling happily into her neck.

She giggled, "Welcome back!" It squee'd.

"Listen. There is an added bonus with this carbuncle. With him as your familiar, you can make as many carbuncles appear whenever and wherever you like. The incantation is…"

But he was cut off by a voice—there's Grim—from Katalina's bag, "The Familiar's Incantation. It is the familiar's name plus…"

"Grim!" Katalina jumped.

The headmaster laughed, "Oh, now I see! You've been using that grimoire!"

Grim popped out of Katalina's bag, "It's been a long time, Randolph."

"You two know each other?!" Katalina exclaimed.

"Do we know each other? Why, he created me!" Grim said, sounding as please as a magical book could be.

"I thought he was going to stay on the shelf gathering dust. I've pleased to hear that he's with you, Katalina."

"Yes. Grim's helped me a lot with my studying."

The headmaster smiled upon heading her nickname for him, "In that case, you may also have Grim, too. I'd much rather have him been of use than sit about whining because he's crammed in a library shelf."

"Really?!"

"Yes. It doesn't seem like anyone's going to borrow him anyway."

"Hey!" Grim protested, "I cannot dismiss such comments!" He paused. "But, well, if it means I don't have to go back to that dusty old library...then perhaps I shall let it pass."

Katalina giggled, "Grim, Bubbles, I look forward to many more adventures together!" The carbuncle seemed to like it's new name,.but I had to bite my lip in an attempt not to laugh. She was too cute.

"Good for you, Katalina." I told her.

"Thanks!" She grinned at me.

Grim made a sound, "Well then aren't you going to try out the spell to summon the carbuncles?"

"Ah! That's right!"

"Good! The first part is 'I command thee under our oath!' and then…"

"You say 'Invocare' followed by the familiar's name." The headmaster cut in.

"Hey!" Grim pouted, "Don't do my job for me!"

"Incidentally," the headmaster continued, ignoring Grim, "you should have an idea of how many familiars you'd like to summon, then focus hard, or else the spell may fail. How about we start off with just one?" Are you sure, headmaster? Are you really sure about this?

"Sure!" She rolled up her sleeves and pulled out her wand. Or tried to. "Ah! My wand! That's right!"

"I found it in the Tower's innermost room." Professor Schuyler said, handing it to her. He then looked at the headmaster, "Loran is currently unconscious, Randolph, and poses no threat."

"Ah! Thank you so much!" Katalina accepted her wand and readied herself again. She looked so cute like that, all determined. "All right! I command thee under our oath! Carbuncle Invocare!" Then, a giant ball of light appeared on the end of her wand. "Huh?!" Oh no. I had a bad feeling about this. The light ball burst, sending out tons of white carbuncles into the air. "N-no way?!"

As the carbuncles continued to appear, I rubbed my temples. I had a feeling that it would be me who'd have to do most of the cleanup. "Really, why do you always, _always…_ "

"Goodness. You've managed to mess up again, haven't you?" Grim sighed.

The headmaster burst into laughter, "Why, today's forecast is sunny with the occasional carbuncles, it seems."

"Randolph! How can you be so easy going?!" Professor Schuyler snapped before turning to Katalina to snap at her, "Katalina! What on earth do you intend to do about this state of affairs?"

"I-I'm very, very sorry!" she yelped.

Eventually the carbuncles stopped appearing, and both her and I breathed a sigh of relief.

"You know, I feel like we're forgetting someone."

"What's wrong, Elias?" Katalina asked me.

"No...it's nothing." But I feel like I'm going to have to explain all this to Selene, as well. That'll be interesting...

* * *

 **Fun Fact 14** : If you haven't noticed, I've pretty much cut out a lot of the original chapter. The battle between Luca and Elias takes up most of the original. But we can't have that—I've got plans for Luca. I can't just have him be a bad guy, you know? I still need him for later plot. But that's the nice thing about fanfiction—I get to decide. XD


	15. Chapter 12

TheFallenHer0: No, he really doesn't. But he and Katalina will get plenty of time in the near future. ;) As for the voices, your assumption is correct. And the pranking thing is a good idea. I think I might incorporate that. It'd be fun. Here's the chapter!

* * *

Chapter 12—The Words I Want to Say

Katalina and I made it back to our individual dorms. Yukiya was still wherever he went when he was sick, so I had the room to myself. I crashed. I was completely out for about two hours. I woke up feeling groggy, tired, and dirty. I showered and felt much better. It was only then I looked out my window.

Carbuncles.

Carbuncles _everywhere_.

I caught a magic note as it fluttered in through the crack of the slightly-opened window. It was from the headmaster, and read:

' _Elias,_

 _Due to the Carbuncle Bungle, students are not allowed to leave their dorms without permission. You are needed to aid your buddy in the cleanup. Meet me in front of the girls' dorm in twenty minutes._

— _Headmaster Randolph_ '

Oh gosh. He _named_ it. This is bad. Goodness me...Selene would be loving this. She would. She'd be laughing her head off, thinking it was the funniest thing in the world.

I met the headmaster at the appointed time. It was an interesting walk, trying to wade through those carbuncles. I eventually just gave up somewhere around the halfway point and levitated myself the rest of the way.

The headmaster greeted me, informing me of the post-events of what had happened last night, and Katalina appeared soon after he was done. She seemed confused to see me, "Elias?"

"Oh, you're here, Katalina." The headmaster welcomed.

"Good morning, Headmaster Randolph." she replied.

"Morning, Katalina." I nodded at her.

"Morning, Elias." she smiled at me. It was a tired smile, not as wide as her usual one, but it still sent flutters through me.

"Now then." The headmaster said, "Do you both know why I have called you both out here?"

Katalina gave an awkward little laugh, "Um, well, could it have anything to do with…" she gestured at the carbuncles all around us. "This?" As if they knew she was talking about them, a bunch of them began to make happy 'squee' sounds.

"That's right. Everywhere looks the same as it does here. Even within the school grounds." He said. My question was _how in the heck did this many of those things exist_?

It's a valid question. I thought they were supposed to be _rare_ magical creatures.

"E-even within the school g-grounds?" Her eyes widened.

"I have to confine students to the dorms for today due to carbuncle damage."

"W-what?!" She gasped. Then her shoulders slumped. "I'm sorry…"

The headmaster laughed, "Well, there's nothing we can do about it. I was the one who taught you the incantation, after all. And this isn't a sight you see every day. No, it is interesting, isn't it? Professor Schuyler is taking care of the ones in the East Forest as we speak. I'm going to be dealing with a few other sites. And you, since it is your mistake that had led to all this, I will have you take responsibility."

"Y-yes…" she said, head bowed in dread.

"Good." He nodded, still smiling and completely amused. "Please clean up the carbuncles within the school grounds."

"Okay…"

He then looked at me and winked, "And your buddy will also take equal responsibility."

I sighed, "Yes, I knew that was the plan from the beginning."

He nodded, "Ah, and it seems like you've learned what it means to be a buddy. Good, good. Right then. I'll leave you two here to tidy up."

"Yes, sir." Katalina and I said simultaneously.

"Oh," he added, "The incantation for returning the carbuncles is 'I command thee, return to whence you came! Redire Warae!' Right then. I'm counting on you two." He waved his hand and left.

"E-elias?" Katalina said timidly, "I'm sorry about all this…"

I just sighed and said, "Let's hurry up and get started." The sooner we start, the sooner we're done.

"Huh? You're not mad?"

"It's not a big deal." I said simply. Besides, I'll get to spend time with you, now won't I?

"But I dragged you into my mess again…"

I smiled at her, "Buddies are two as one, are they not?"

"Elias…" she smiled back gratefully.

And now I feel awkward. Dang social anxiety! "That's what they say, anyway." I covered quickly, "And just how were you able to summon so many carbuncles?"

"Um…"

Now I was feeling dejected. "We've been undergoing special training and all that, and you still make these mistakes…" I bet that if it was Klaus training her, she'd be much better by this point.

"I-I'm sorry…"

I looked over at her, "I've said countless times that when you cast a spell, it's not just a matter of saying the incantation. When you say the spell in the first place, you have to focus on what you're trying to achieve. Yukiya explained how he does it once, and it made a lot of sense. You picture what you want to happen in your head, and focus on it while casting the sp...What are you smirking at?" I demanded, "Are you even listening to me?"

She was smiling and her eyes had started to glaze over, but when I said that she blinked and jerked to awareness, "Y-yes, I'm listening!"

"Geez…" I sighed.

"Right! Let's get this over with." And she was back to smiling that annoying, beautiful, irritatingly cheerful, heart melting, oh-so-wonder...focus, Elias, focus!

"Do you have any right to say that?" I scolded, but it turned into a sigh. "Whatever. Let's just get this done.

…. …. ….

"Redire Warae!" I chanted. A handful of carbuncles disappeared in a puff of smoke. I glanced over at Katalina, who'd just performed the same spell. "Hey, why does only one disappear when you do it? I'm ending up having to do most of the work!"

She giggled, "But look! I'm not messing up! It's an improvement, right?"

And so I turned to talk my way out of this situation, "Well, that's true...actually, I was worried about what we'd do if you summoned any _more_ carbuncles." I inhaled, "Can we take a break? I'm tired. And it's your fault."

She pouted for only a moment at my words before reverting back to her smile. "Ah, sure. Let's take a break."

We both sat down in the grass. We were mostly done poofing away the carbuncles at this point, and were currently in one of the courtyards. "Ah, that's right." I said, remembering something that the headmaster had told me, "It seems like they've made Professor Merkulova resign."

"I see." she said, "He was such a nice teacher, too. Power really does make people go crazy, I guess."

"Yeah…" I agreed absentmindedly, "The weaker you are, the more power you want. I was the same…"

"Elias…"

"Remember that time I challenged Luca to a duel in Practical Magic?"

"Yeah."

"At that time, if Luca had really wanted to, he could have beaten me, easily."

"You don't know that."

I shook my head, "No, I do. Luca is a lot stronger than he likes to let on. But...I feel like I understand a little more about how Luca feels, about why he never takes magic seriously. Maybe it was because he possessed such 'power'. Maybe it's the thing he's afraid of the most. Selene once told me—and said she was quoting some sort of fictional hero with spider-powers or something—that 'with great power comes great responsibility.'"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"The more power you have, the more pressure there is on how you use it. Selene told me that one of her biggest fears is that she'll end up hurting someone with her magic. Her fire is pretty much under control, and her wind is now, too, but she once told me something. When she goes into an extremely emotional state, she completely loses control of her powers, and doesn't remember anything that happens once control is lost until she passes out. She told me she once nearly killed a kid because of it, and that she's lost control like that seven times in her life. And it terrifies her that one day she might lose control and never be able to get it back. Selene is one of the most powerful magic-users I know. But I don't think I'd ever want such power, if such heavy burdens and fears came with it. It takes a stronger person than I to have so much power and be able to manage all the responsibilities that came with it."

"Elias…"

"Well," I changed the topic, "No matter what we say here, it's not really going to change anything, anyway." I laughed a bit, feeling light as I layed back onto the grass. It's true. I may not have the raw power of Selene or Luca or my brother's, but I'm not weak. And I don't have as heavy a burden as they do. "The sky looks nice today, too."

I heard Katalina lay down next to me, her feet pointing in the opposite direction and her head near mine. "Yeah. It's beautiful."

It was a little while before I said anything. "You're really something. This sky, the wind, the earth, the warm sunlight...it feels like they're all a part of you."

"Wha…"

"Maybe there's something about you I've admired all along…something I don't have…"

"Elias…"

"That's why I…" I was about to tell her, I was going to tell her. I was going to tell her that I was in love with her. But, alas, fate is cruel.

"Are you guys taking a nice friendly nap, or something?"

Authoress: Sigh… fate is cruel, isn't it? As I'm working on this, I just finished an Honors Physics test and I want to cry because I know I didn't pass…

Elias: go away. You're ruining the story. You can whine about your problems in the author's note.

Authoress: Hey! By the time I actually write the note—which'll be soon before I post this chapter—it'll probably be past Christmas here! Sorry, Midwinter (for all you Myulan folk).

Elias: And? Back to the story!

Authoress: Fine, fine…

Katalina and I both jolted at the familiar voice, looked at one another, and then scrambled to get up.

"Hey lovebirds." Luca smirked as he watched us brush the grass off our uniforms.

"Luca!" Katalina exclaims.

"What are you doing here?!" I demand, "Without permission, students are to stay in within their respective dorms!

He chuckled, "Why don't we say, 'I went for a walk.'"

"Luca!" Katalina scolded, "Doing things like this without permission is just going to get you in trouble!"

"Oh, are you worried about me?" Luca was _flirting_. With _Katalina_. I'm going to _strangle him_. "Aw, you shouldn't have been worried, Kittycat, I'm not going to get in to much trouble!"

"Shouldn't you be worried about how Selene would react? From what I've heard, she'd get upset with you. I've also heard that when Selene's upset, you shouldn't be near her." Katalina continued.

He was laughing as he put an arm around her shoulders. I felt my fists clench with irritation. And he sees it. I know he does. Despite his ignorant front, he rarely misses anything.

"Hey!" I growled at him, "Don't touch her!" I grabbed his arm and yanked it off her.

"Ouch, your grip is too tight, man." He whined as I pulled Katalina behind me. I felt really protective all of a sudden. He watched before smirking, "Let me guess. You've gotten yourself a special little princess, huh?"

"It's got nothing to do with you." I replied, my nose metaphorically in the air.

"Well, as we're on topic, why don't we have a duel?" Not on topic. It just proves you were eavesdropping. "If you win, I'll go back to the dorms, no fuss. But, if _I_ win," he smirks, "I get Katalina."

Katalina choked in surprise, "What?!"

My eyes narrowed as I glared at him, "Let me tell you this. I don't know what you're up to. And I'm not going to hand over Katalina, that's for sure."

"Aw shucks." Luca grins in a carefree manner and shrugs, "How boring." Then he laughs, "Ah, whatever. Anyway, I'm going to come for you again sometime, Katalina." He winked at her. "But for now, I've got places to be, so see ya later Kittycat~!"

"Luca!" I snapped. He then winked at me and walked off. I shook my head, "I do hope Selene comes back soon. She's pretty much the only one who can handle him."

"Oh Luca." She said, "I mean, he's not a bad guy, but…"

"Exactly. But. He's a handful, and unless he starts actually trying, he's never going to get anywhere. Just because he doesn't want to bear the full brunt of his responsibility, he shouldn't try to get out of bearing any at all. He needs to do _something_ , and he knows it, no matter how much he doesn't want to acknowledge it." I sighed, "Whatever." It turned away from Katalina, my brows furrowed. I had just remembered that he had been eavesdropping. Meaning he'd messed up my attempted confession. At least he hadn't actually heard me confess. I'd never hear the end of it. But I hated the fact that he had touched her so casually.

I felt a hand lightly touch my shoulder. "What's wrong, Elias? Are you angry about something?"

"I am angry." I might as well just admit it.

"Why?" she asked.

"You need to keep your guard up!" I snapped.

"What?"

I still wasn't able to bring myself to look at her, "It's because you just stand there being so absent minded that guys like Luca think that they can just come up and put their arm around you or whatsoever!"

"B-but there was nothing I could do! It was so unexpected!" she protested.

"No it wasn't!" I turned to face her, "It was because you were standing there staring so blankly!"

"W-what?!"

We both were glaring fiercely at the other. Why do we keep ending up in this position? I swear, we bicker like this at least as much as Selene teases Klaus and I!

The tension was broken unexpectedly by the squee of Bubbles the carbuncle, who most randomly poofed in between us..

"Huh? Where have you been?" Katalina asked. I noticed that Bubbles was, in fact, holding the Persona Mirror. Katalina sighed, "And why do you have that…?"

But Bubbles just squeed and turned to me, pointing the Mirror in my direction.

"W-what are you…!" But I was cut off by my mirror voice.

"I'm still finding it a bit difficult to believe, but I think I'm...infatuated with Katalina. I get this awful feeling in my chest whenever some other guy touches her, and I get to annoyed...I just can't let it go. This...this is the first time I've felt this way. And that's not all. When I'm with her, I feel so at ease, like I'm bathing in warm sunlight. It's the first time I've felt so calm and happy and relaxed…"

"...?!" I felt my face flush crimson, and quickly reached out to snatch the mirror away from the carbuncle. How dare he?! That little…! I had this planned out! You stupid creature! Bubbles, you've ruined everything!

"Squee?" It tilts its head in confusion.

"N-no squee!" I cried.

Katalina then spoke, "Uh...t-that just now...it...umm…"

"T-that's why...that...I…" And now I'm a stuttering mess! I looked at the ground. Neither of us said a world. Eventually I steeled up the courage to speak and raised my head, determined. Deep breath in, deep breath out. "The Persona Mirror reflects people's true selves, so I'm not going to make any excuses."

"Elias…"

But I continued. "There is something I want to tell you through my own words, not through that mirror." Inhale. "I believe that you'll make it into this academy. So, after you're officially enrolled, I'll tell you then." Exhale.

"Okay." She agreed, her cheeks still tinged ever-so-slightly red. And I really hope those aren't tears I see in her eyes…

…. …. ….

That night, as I lay in bed, I found myself not thinking of just of Katalina, but of Klaus.

He admitted to me once that the night before Selene's trial had him restless, too. It was stressful, particularly when the woman in question was one you were in love with. Klaus told me that he was going to confess after she made it in and he was sure she wouldn't reject him. He didn't want to confess only to have her have to leave next thing. I guess I feel the same.

Yukiya was still not back, but I'm pretty sure he'd be fine again by tomorrow. I feel kind of bad. My notes from the last few days hadn't been so well done as they normally are. Yukiya's going to have to get them from someone else. And then share them with me. I have to make sure I have a good, cohesive set of notes for Selene when she gets back as well. She's been gone for almost three weeks at this point.

But that'll be for later. For now, I will focus on this troublesome little love of mine.

* * *

 **Fun Fact 15** : For a while, I had a lot of trouble deciding whether to do the Happy Ending or the Normal Ending. Then I remembered that I needed to have Katalina in there so Selene could coo over her when she gets back. Therefore, she couldn't really _not_ be there. I took the easy route out and used the Happy Ending. XD


	16. Chapter 13

And this is the closing chapter for the main part of Taming! I hope you all enjoyed it this far. After I post this, I'm going to label it as "Complete." I may add bonus chapters, but, as I mentioned in the prologue, that's unlikely. Maybe if inspiration strikes or I finish the Elemental Spiral (which is unlikely for several years at this point...) Thanks for sticking with the story! Also, it's entirely coincidental that this ended right with the finale of Elemental (Halfling eventually to come!)

ThFallenHer0: Well, when you've got insomnia (at least in my experience), you learn to live with never enough sleep. I think I average five hours a night, thereabouts? It's a learned skill. As for Elias, yeah, he's pretty much just accepted he's going to have to clean up a _lot_ of messes. As for Luca and Bubbles, they totally ship Katalina and Elias. And here's the Happy Ending you've been waiting for!

* * *

Chapter 13—Deep in My Heart

"Time really has flown by, hasn't it?" I can hear Katalina talking to Bubbles as I approach.

Today, classes were delayed about an hour due to most teachers having meetings. I was up early this morning, and took a walk, thinking over the past almost three weeks. The past two days, the last two of Katalina's trial, had flown by. When Klaus had admitted that he had fallen in love in less than two weeks after meeting, I was astounded. I believed that it took a lot longer than that to actually fall in love. As it turns out, I was wrong. It's not what happens to everyone, but it sure as heck has happened to all the Goldstein brothers. Percy knew Eliane a week before proposing when they were both eighteen. Klaus fell in love with Selene in under two weeks. And I fell in love with Katalina.

Back to the present.

"Is now really the time to get sentimental?" I know, I'm being hypocritical. Sue me.

She jumped, and turned to me, "Elias! Why are you here?"

"I've come for you."

"Huh?"

I gave her a look, "I can't just sit still by myself waiting when my Buddy's finding out the result of the trial today."

"Elias…" she smiled at me and I turned around and was a bit embarrassed at what that smile was doing to me.

"Let's go." I said gruffly.

"Thank you." she said, sincere as can be.

"Don't mind that. I'm doing it for myself."

"Even so, thank you." She insisted.

"Welcome…" I mumbled.

I brought her to the auditorium, where trials were held. "The Judgement is going to start soon. I can't be here." I told nodded, looking nervous, and I continued. "It'll be okay. For sure. Well, it'll be okay if…" she looked up at me alarmed and I smiled, "Only if you don't pull a Selene."

Her brows came together in confusion, "What she do?"

"She went straight to my brother's office after her own trial was over. Klaus told me about it. She came into his office looking like she was going to cry, and told him that she didn't make it."

Katalina gasped, "She didn't!"

"She did. And nearly gave my brother a heart attack. Until she started laughing."

"Oh my gosh!"

"Yes. And then she went to class and pulled the same trick on us." I shook my head. "I swear I nearly strangled her."

"That's so mean! But…" Katalina looked like she wanted to giggle.

"But looking back, it was actually pretty funny. Honestly, I kind of wish I could've seen Klaus' face. I bet it was priceless." I smiled comfortingly at Katalina. "Feeling better?"

She nodded.

"You'll definitely pass." I informed her.

"Elias." She looked me in the eyes, "How can you know that?"

"I'm the one who trained you, after all." I sniffed, making a joke out of it.

She giggled, "Yeah, that's right. I'll pass for sure because of that."

"That's the spirit. It's not like you to be so pessimistic."

"Yeah!" It was so wonderful to see her smiling again.

Oh yeah. The carbuncle was on her shoulder. "Sorry, Bubbles, you get to come with me." I held out my hand and he hopped off her shoulder, scurrying up my arm with a squee before coming to sit upon my shoulder. "Right then, we'll wait outside."

"Okay! And thanks, Elias."

I nodded, smiling back at her. I turned around, opened the door, and left the auditorium.

Her trial would take at least a half an hour, so I decided to go ahead and check the prefect's office to see if anything had been dropped off at the prefect's office that I needed to do. I pulled the key out of my bag and opened the door. Bubbles bounced happily on my shoulder as I made my way to the desk. There were only a few things for me to do, and they were done quickly. I looked at the clock on the wall, and realized that I should probably get going.

I got up from the chair—which, by the way, was extremely comfortable, and it was no wonder, seeing as how much time Klaus usually seems to have to spend in it—and went to make my way to the door. But my clothing caught on something, and a folder fell, causing a bunch of papers from inside it to flutter to the floor. I swore and started to gather the papers up.

One of them caught my eye. It was labeled, " _Elementals—Real or Merely Legend?_ " written in Klaus' neat script. The folder was labeled for one of his classes. It was a research project then. I think I've heard about elementals. They're also called phoenixes sometimes. But that's about all. They're very rarely mentioned anywhere and not much of anything is known about them. Lots of people don't even think they're real. It's just like Klaus to take on such a difficult project. I'll have to ask him about it when he gets back. It honestly sounds quite interesting.

I head back to where I told Katalina I'd meet her, and set my bag down on the ground. I was about to sit down and wait when I heard my name. "Elias!"

"Katalina! How'd it go?" all the worry I'd been feeling about this came back in full force as I turned to face her.

"Yeah, actually…" She looked sad. Oh no oh no oh no no no...!

But then she grinned and squealed, "I got in! I'm now an official student here!"

"You got it…" Then it processed in my mind. "You got in?!"

"Yeah! I passed!"

"...YES!" I cried out, smiling, "Really, I can't believe it!" It was too good to be true. "Does this mean we can carry on being together around school from now on too, right?" It was _way_ too good to be true." I reached out and hugged her, acting entirely on impulse.

Her smile, somehow, grew wider, "Yeah! It means we can still be together from now on!"

"Great!" I was matching her grin, feeling light and carefree and just plain happy. It was a wonderful feeling.

Then she started to laugh.

My eyebrows went together in confusion, "What? What's wrong?"

She shook her head, "Nothing, I just thought that it's not every day I get to see you so happy for me."

Wait. What am I doing?! What's wrong with me?! I hurriedly released her, backing up a couple steps. It must be hormones. It has to be. Klaus said they're almost always responsible for unusual behavior in teens. Yeah...hormones...gah…and now I'm all awkward again! "Ah...I-it didn't mean anything!" And there's my dratted blush. She started giggling again. Sun help me… I took a deep breath. "But, really, I'm so glad." Might as well be honest.

"Yeah." she agreed, "It's all thanks to you, Elias."

And so I play Klaus for a moment. "Well, yeah, I guess it's natural you'd get in after I trained you so hard." The corner of my mouth twitched as we looked at each other, and when she smiled, so did I. Wait. "...I promised you, didn't I."

"Hm?"

"I promised you that I had something to tell you if you got officially enrolled into the academy."

"Ah, that's right."

I looked her dead in the eyes, her warm, chocolatey brown eyes...focus, Elias! "Katalina." Her eyes were wide and innocent as she looked back at me. "When you were attacked in the Tower of Sorrow, I was very scared. When I thought I might lose you, I was terrified. It was a kind of fear I've never felt before."

"Elias…"

"I even thought that I would trade my power, trade everything to my name, if I could save you. I'd throw it all away if I could save you. I would've even given up my life for you if I meant I could see you smile again. And that's when it hit me, completely and entirely, how I felt about you. Actually, no. I'm sure I've known it all along, but I was having trouble accepted it, and kept trying to deny it. I didn't want to accept that I could feel this way. I've spent most of my life trying to kill off unneeded feelings. I wasn't interested in anything other than being top of the class and improving my magic in a way befitting my family's name. Again, actually, no, I just pretended that was all I was interested in.

"But then, Selene kept nagging me and telling my to—what was it?—'stop being a robot and become a human' or something like that. And you appeared in front of me, and somehow slid into my heart. I realized how much I depended on you, smiling beside me. It's the first time I've felt this way. It's the first time in my life that anything apart from reputation and magic had meant so much to me. No. You're far more important than magic." I reached out and touched her hair, running my fingers through the soft strands of one of her pigtails.

She was red, and for some reason, I wasn't. "You've changed me. It's like you took me and painted me in a completely different color. My purpose is no longer for the Goldstein name, or for my father, or my brothers. I want to become great just for myself. That's what you taught me, Katalina. You've led me to the answer I've been looking for."

She shook her head. "That's not true. I was just the spark that ignited your thoughts. It's you, Elias. I'm sure you found the answer by yourself."

"Thank you." I smiled at her, gently stroking her cheek with my fingertips. "You said once that you liked my magic, right?"

"Yeah?"

"I was very pleased when you said that. So pleased I wasn't sure at the time whether or not to believe you. Your words make me want to be the one who is always by your side, someone worthy of your admiration."

"Elias…"

I inhaled, and looked her right in the eyes. "I love you."

Her eyes widened and the surprise was clearly evident on her face.

"It's you, or no one else." I continued, "I think that means I love you. Will you be with me, Katalina? I want you to be very close to me from now on. I love your smile. I want you to be my girlfriend."

She was nodding profusely, tears forming in the corners of her eyes, so close to spilling, but not.  
"Oh, yes! Oh course! I love you too, Elias!"

My smile grew, "Katalina." I pulled her into my arms, holding her close. Her face flushed at my boldness. Well, gosh dang it! I'm going to be bold!

"Elias! I-I feel a little embarrassed now, so…" She sputtered. She's adorable and she doesn't even realize it.

"Who cares?" I smirked, "I don't _want_ to let go."

"B-but people are going to start coming s-soon!"

"So what? I want to hold you right now." And she doesn't know how long I've been waiting to do so. "I love you. You're really my girl now, right?"

"Y-yeah…"

"Good."

"Elias…"

"Yesterday, when Luca touched you...no, even just normally, when you look happy talking to Luca, I couldn't stand it. And when you snuck out of the dorm with Yukiya, I just hated it all."

"Wha…" she blinked in surprise.

"I mean, I don't want you to get close to any other guys. I think it's a strange feeling, too." I admitted, "But I can't help but get that funny feeling about it." I tightened my arms around her a bit, "I want you to be mine and mine alone."

I swear I saw a light flash in her eyes. "So, what you mean is...that all of those times you've gotten mad that suddenly...it's because you've been jealous?"

I looked away, feeling my face heat up. I was starting to wonder when the dratted blush would come in. "You probably think it's really childish, huh?" I lifted one hand to cover my mouth, to make an attempt to cover the blush.

"N-no! I mean….I feel happy about it."

My eyes snapped back to hers, "R-really?"

Her face was just as flushed as mine, "I, um, I mean…" Even her ears were red, and it was entirely adorable. No wonder Selene always coos over me when I get flustered. It's cute when Katalina is.

I took her hand in mine, holding it close. Her's was so small compared to mine. "But, if you are, I'm glad. I'm not going to let anyone else touch you." I cradled her face in my other hand, and began to lean in a bit. I closed my eyes and lightly pressed my lips to hers. I felt like I had to be careful with her, that if I held her to hard she'd crack. I knew she was stronger than she looked, but it was hard to not think of her like that.

She was precious, and I was going to treat her as such.

This was so much better than the other kiss. That one was an accident. This was a kiss between lovers who'd finally confessed their feelings to each other. I felt like I could stay like this forever. Like I never wanted this moment to end, no matter how much reason told me it would. Screw you, Reason. You're not welcome right now. I love you, Katalina. I love you.

"Ah, to be young again. I do miss those days. I had a sweet romance with such a beautiful book, Ms. Art Book, back in the day…" Curse you Grim! Why, Grim, why?!

"Ah?!" Katalina yelped and pulled back.

"W-what the crap!?" I cried, "Is that Grim?!"

"N-no...I don't _think_ so…" She looked down at where she'd dropped her bag, and a piece of paper came out from the little pocket in the front and floated in the air.

"Really! Flirting on sacred school grounds when you're only students!" It scolded. Is that an acceptance letter?

"Oh. It's you." I sighed.

And I seem to have offended a piece of magical paper, "What do you mean 'Oh, it's you'!? I'm the Acceptance Letter!"

I looked over at Katalina, "It sounds just like Grim, all stuck-up."

"Oh, yeah, I forgot. They're brothers."

"Really, now?"

And the letter perked back up, "Oh, you guys know my brother?"

"Y-yes…" Katalina said hesitantly, "We call him Grim…"

"Did somebody just call me?" And there he is. Speak of the devil and the devil shall come. Grim came out of the larger pocket of the bag and floated over to the letter.

"Oh! Grimoire!" the letter cried.

Grim chuckled, "Acceptance Letter! Why, it's been a long time, hasn't it?" The two magical items started conversing, forgetting about Katalina and I entirely.

'Squee squee!" And there's Bubbles. He hopped back onto his favorite spot—Katalina's shoulder.

She giggled and look at me, "It's very lively, isn't it?"

"Yeah." I smiled slightly, "Weird things are always gathering around you, aren't they?"

"Pfft…" I could see her make an attempt to not laugh, and saw that attempt fail as she burst into giggles.

"But, it's always fun to be around you." I chuckled, "I can't seem to forget to smile if I stay with you. Really, I didn't realize how important those days were to me before." I smiled at her, "I promise to treat you right, so I can always see your smile from as close as possible."

She managed to quell her giggles, "Elias…"

Something hit my head. I was so surprised I stumbled, "What the heck!"

Katalina reached over and picked something up—an envelope. "Elias, it's addressed to you. A strange bird dropped it. It's over there." She pointed and I looked to see a particular pheonix immata perching in a nearby tree.

"That's Blayze." I saw Katalina's confused look, "Selene's familiar. I haven't seen him since before she left."

"Oh. I wonder why he's here?" Katalina looked at me, "Read the letter. I'll try to go talk to him."

"Good luck. He doesn't like most people. He barely tolerates anyone but Selene." I was already ripping open the side of the envelope. It contained a single piece of paper.

 _Elias,_

 _This'll be short. I'm coming back to the school in the next couple of days. Selene will not for a while. I don't even know at this point if she will come back. There's too much to include here, but I'll explain when I return. It's a mess._

— _Klaus_

I stared at the sheet, rereading it several times. What's a mess? And why is there a chance Selene might not come back? Just what happened.

Something touched my arm and I jumped, "Elias? Are you okay? You look really worried."

"It's from Klaus. He says he'll be back within the week. But he's not sure Selene will return at all." I can't really say much else, I'm in such shock.

"Why not?"

"I don't know." I admitted, "Klaus said he'd explain when he got back." Just then, the warning bell rang. "And it's time for class."

"Yeah." She gently took my hand, "Let's go."

As we walked, I only had one thing left to say. "If anything good came of today, I look forward together as your buddy...and a partner in your life."

"I look forward to it." She looked over and smiled comfortingly at me, "It'll all work out okay. It can't not."

"That didn't make sense." I pointed out.

"Did too!"

"Hey! Don't leave me behind!" Grim shouted.

"Me neither! Don't forget about me!" the Acceptance Letter cried. I rolled my eyes as we stopped to let them catch up.

I turned my gaze to the sky only to see Blazye in flight. A quick flash of light, and he was gone.

 _Selene, I hope you're alright._

* * *

Authoress: Wowzers. This is actually done! I'm actually very proud of myself. Now I can continue working on other parts of the Spiral.

Aurora: Yup. Good job. Now, when'll Mom get back to the school? You've got me anxious.

Authoress: Eventually. I'll tell you that much. Certain things have to happen first. And it's going to be a rough period of time in Halfling for a long while. It's going to be difficult to write, only because I get so involved in my stories that if it's an extended period of not-so-happy story times, it starts to affect my mood in my own life.

Aurora: Yup. When she wrote chapter 47/48 of Elemental, she took two weeks to start writing again because she kept getting so depressed and upset that she had to stop.

Authoress: But it'll be worth it. I hate causing my characters pain and suffering, but it's often necessary for the plot. I'll get it done, don't worry. I'm way to involved in the Spiral to give it up now. Seriously, I've got big plans for this story.

Aurora: She does. Eventually, once it's all done (however many years that will take) she'll do a major edit on the entire thing and make it her own original story.

Authoress: I mean, if something like Fifty Shades of Grey (which is dirty and I'll never read), which was a Twilight (which I did read and it wasn't as bad as the movies ended up being) fanfiction, and it got published as a series _and_ made into a movie, why can't the Elemental Spiral?

Aurora: It's a good point, honestly. And, it just gives her more motivation to finish the Spiral.

Authoress: Darn tootin' it does!

* * *

 **Fun Fact 15** : It took approximately four months for me to complete this story start to finish (not literally, I guess, but more in the way of I started it and then finished it four months later, with lots of time in between where I didn't write).


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